


Placeholder

by Acey_Chey (mrs_sakuma)



Category: The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Body Dysphoria, Canonical Character Death, Discussion of Abortion, Discussion of Gender, Drug Use, Dysfunctional Family, Gen, Gender Dysphoria, He/Him and They/Them Pronouns for Klaus Hargreeves, Homophobic Language, M/M, Misgendering, Mostly present tense but it's a little inconsistent sometimes, NaNoWriMo 2020, Non-Binary Klaus Hargreeves, Nopocalypse, POV Alternating, Parent Klaus Hargreeves, Past Child Abuse, Past Diego Hargreeves/Eudora Patch, Pre-Canon, Rating May Change, Self-Esteem Issues, Sober Klaus Hargreeves, Tags Subject to Change, Trans Eudora Patch, Trans Klaus Hargreeves, Unplanned Pregnancy, Young Number Five | The Boy, but Vanya made some assumptions that others have picked up, i'll try to fix that up in edits, implied/referenced past prostitution, in what context I don't yet know, just uneducated, klaus hargreeves goes to therapy, most of it isn't malicious, no beta we die like ben, not sure how to tag Mom's programming tampering, probably at some point, some OOCness probably
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-01
Updated: 2021-01-16
Packaged: 2021-03-08 22:53:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 34
Words: 55,747
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27324559
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mrs_sakuma/pseuds/Acey_Chey
Summary: PLEASE NOTE: THIS IS A FIRST DRAFT WIP, EXPECT MISTAKES IN SPELLING, GRAMMAR, AND TIMELINESafter drafting I plan to edit and republish a cleaner, more complete version in the future~~~When Klaus sees the news that their father is dead, they’re feeding their seven-month-old daughter, Grace Kelly Katz, one year sober, and finally back on T (prescribed this time).  Their siblings still haven't met Dave, let alone Gracie, and Klaus can't bear the thought of introducing them, not now, under these circumstances, so they go alone.But when the family reunion becomes complete with Five's sudden and bizarre arrival, not from 45 years in a wasteland, but directly from the lunch he ran away from 20 years ago, they realize things are going to get more complicated and they might not be able to put it off any longer.
Relationships: Ben Hargreeves & Klaus Hargreeves, Klaus Hargreeves & Everyone, Klaus Hargreeves/David "Dave" Katz, Number Five | The Boy & Klaus Hargreeves
Comments: 306
Kudos: 791





	1. 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys, first fic in the fandom!  
> I've been working on the notes for about two weeks, and it feels fairly fleshed out. I'm writing for NaNoWriMo and will try to update as often as possible. after I finish, I'll probably edit/clean/tighten it up, but I'm posting as I write to get that hit of serotonin from that sweet, sweet Validation.  
> Also, my brother doesn't watch and can't read/beta for me.  
> I hope you enjoy!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben crosses his arms, materializing in front of him with a glare. Klaus glares back and stomps through him. “You can’t keep doing this,” he calls, turning to face Klaus again, but not moving to follow.
> 
> “Watch me,” they snark, raising a hand to flip him off over their shoulder. As they continue marching off, all three of them know they’ll be back that evening, once the high has faded and the guilt set in. Klaus would come crawling home, tail between their legs, and beg Dave’s forgiveness.
> 
> Ben doesn’t follow, obviously preferring to go read over library patrons shoulders or something than watch his sibling prance around like this. Klaus pretends not to care, to be happier this way, and continues down the street. Two blocks away, the crushed pill starting to kick in, Klaus decides to jay-walk and, ever vigilant, is struck by a car.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, first fic in the fandom!  
> I've been working on the notes for about two weeks, and it feels fairly fleshed out. I'm writing for NaNoWriMo and will try to update as often as possible. after I finish, I'll probably edit/clean/tighten it up, but I'm posting as I write to get that hit of serotonin from that sweet, sweet Validation.  
> Also, my brother doesn't watch and can't read/beta for me.  
> I hope you enjoy!

Klaus storms out of the apartment, slamming the door behind themself, and crunches down on the pill in their mouth. They shouldn’t, it tastes disgusting and it messes with how it kicks in, but Klaus is just angry and tetchy and a fucking idiot. What is wrong with them? Why would they push so hard? Dave just wants to help them, Dave _loves_ them, but Klaus?

Klaus doesn’t know how to do anything but self-destruct.

Dave lets them leave, doesn’t come bursting out after them, doesn’t beg them to come inside, to talk it out. And maybe that means he’s done, that he can’t take Klaus’s _shit_ anymore. And that would be fair, Klaus couldn’t blame him.

“Where are you going?”

And _there’s_ Ben, Klaus’s conscience, always there to remind them what an idiot they are. How they do nothing but throw every opportunity, push every person, far far away.

“Dunno,” they bite out, digging around for a cigarette, only to realize they hadn’t even remembered their coat, which is stupid in the middle of February, when there was snow on the ground and the promise of more in the sky.

“Just go back, Klaus. This is stupid!”

“I know that!” Klaus snaps, wishing the drugs would just _kick in already_ , so they didn’t have to feel like this anymore. They could be happy for a few minutes, could forget their troubles and just _exist_ , just five minutes without the ghosts. “I know it’s stupid and selfish and I _don’t care!_ ” They were so _tired_ , and Klaus just wanted a break. They were trying so hard to do better, hadn’t touched the hard stuff in so long, and this wasn’t even that bad, just a _little_ molly, just enough to take the edge off the ghosts that lurked in their building.

Ben crosses his arms, materializing in front of them with a glare. Klaus glares back and stomps through him. “You can’t keep doing this,” he calls, turning to face Klaus again, but not moving to follow.

“Watch me,” they snark, raising a hand to flip him off over their shoulder. As they continue marching off, all three of them know they’ll be back that evening, once the high has faded and the guilt set in. Klaus would come crawling home, tail between their legs, and beg Dave’s forgiveness.

And Dave, who might be an even bigger moron than Klaus, would give it. He always did.

Ben doesn’t follow, obviously preferring to go read over library patrons shoulders or something than watch his sibling prance around like this. Klaus pretends not to care, to be happier this way, and continues down the street. Two blocks away, the crushed pill starting to kick in, Klaus decides to jay-walk and, ever vigilant, is struck by a car.

~~~~~~

Diego was Not Happy to be walking into the hospital today. But he was doing it, to check on Klaus, because his sister --brother? Klaus had never specified, but after leaving home, Klaus was different. At Ben’s funeral, Klaus had shown up in a suit, which was weird, but at least Klaus showed at all. Klaus’s voice had been weird, too, a little deeper than he remembered, but that could have been anything from a cold to the cigarette habit Klaus had developed before running away. Diego had let Klaus crash at his place a few years ago and woke up to Klaus strutting around the place topless, but with bandages covering up everything he wouldn’t have wanted to see, pressing it all as flat as it could, actually. When he mentioned it to Vanya, before she wrote that fucking book, she had suggested Klaus was trans.

Diego had checked out for about half that conversation, but got the idea that she thought Klaus was a boy now. She had even put it _in_ that fucking book, which pissed him off, because if Klaus _was_ a guy, he didn’t need to be outed to the whole planet. But that wasn’t the point.

Right now, Diego was at the reception desk, asking what room Klaus was in. Eudora had called him from work, which was weird, because even when they were still together, she didn’t like to be distracted during work. But she’d been there, had seen Klaus, and thought Diego should know. It was nice of her, not that the hospital wouldn’t have been ringing him up, considering he was the only one that still showed when Klaus ended up like this.

At least it wasn’t drugs this time. Well, they probably had something to do with why Klaus was in the middle of the street, but Klaus hadn’t OD’d this time, at least.

Diego is still down the hall, counting room numbers, when he hears Klaus’s voice.

“You can’t _hold_ me here! This is a violation of my rights!"

“Ms. Hargreeves, please--”

“I don’t need all these tests! I’m fine, and I want to go home!”

“Klaus,” Diego says sharply, walking in. There, he finds Klaus fighting two nurses off in an attempt to get up from the bed and out of the room. Looking up, Klaus grins brightly, still trying to stand, but distracted now.

“Diego! What a surprise!” Klaus cries, raising one hand to wave HELLO at him.

“Yeah, sure,” Diego replies, rolling his eyes. “What happened this time?”

“Well, no time for pleasantries, I see,” Klaus huffs, still trying to stand. “How did you know I was here?”

“Eudora was there.”

"Ooh, LadyCop! I like her, how’s that been going?”

“It hasn’t, would you just _sit down_?” Klaus frowns, pouting at him, but stops fighting and settles down on the bed again. “Now, what is this yelling about?”

“They wanna do all these _tests_ , Diego, and I don’t have _tiiiiime_ for that,” Klaus whines, flopping against the pillows.

“Klaus, they just wanna make sure you aren’t hurt.”

“But I don’t _wanna_ , I don’t need all their scans and ultra- _whatevers_ , I need to go home!”

Diego sighs, eyes closing momentarily as he pinches the bridge of his nose. “Klaus, the sooner you cooperate, the sooner you get out of here."

Klaus quiets down, seeming to consider Diego’s words. “Alright, fine, but can I please get my phone call?”

“This is a hospital, not _jail_ , Klaus, you don’t get a phone call. Besides, I’m already here, who else are you gonna call?”

"Well, my boyfriend, for one,” Klaus says, giggling slightly. Definitely high on something. “He’s probably starting to get worried, it’s been _hours_.”

“Uh-huh,” Diego hums doubtfully, the nurses slipping past out the door, giving them some privacy. “And does this _boyfriend_ have anything to do with what happened today?”

“What are you talking about? What could he possibly--”

“It was a hit and run, Klaus!”

“You think _Dave_ did this?”

“Well, it wouldn't be the first time,” Diego says defensively, crossing his arms. It was true, he’d scraped Klaus up off the sidewalk more than once after some _boyfriend_ or _roommate_ or what _ever_ decided to get violent. Not that Klaus didn’t sometimes deserve some sense knocked into that drug-addled head, but not like that.

“This is different! He’s a good guy!” Klaus exclaims, limbs flapping about.

“They’re _always_ a good guy until he hits you with his _car_ , Klaus!”

“Diego!” Klaus shouts, fists coming down on the bed.

They’re silent for a moment, Klaus’s fists clenching in the sheet. Klaus twitches a little, glancing to the side, but doesn’t start talking to thin air, so Diego takes that as a temporary win. Then Klaus sighs, hands coming up to scrub at the pale face and bloodshot eyes. Diego waits until Klaus looks up at him again, but clearly has nothing else to say in this _Dave’s_ defense.

“Look, if you need a place to crash for a while--”

“I _dooon’t_ ,” Klaus groans, head falling back against the headboard.

Diego can’t help the frustration sparking within his chest, and he feels his face twist in irritation that Klaus wouldn’t just take the help he was trying to offer. But Klaus _never_ took his help, not really. Klaus might crash for a night or two, but always disappeared, along with every red cent Diego had in his wallet.

Diego stopped keeping cash altogether, eventually.

“You really wanna stay with another asshole?” he bites, and maybe he’s being a little unfair, if the guy was _actually_ bad news, Klaus wouldn’t need so much convincing, but Diego is angry and tired of Klaus pulling this shit. “I suppose he’s out there slinging dope, too. What, does he give you a special discount that’s just too good to turn down?”

“Don’t talk about him like that! Dave loves me! I didn’t ask you to be here, so why don’t you go home?” Klaus spits, fists clenched tight again, head shaking back and forth.

“What, not gonna ask me to foot the bill, first?” Diego scoffs, standing straighter and letting his arms fall to his sides.

“Fuck you, I can take care of it myself.”

“Sure,” Diego snorts. By force of habit, Diego finds a knife in his hand, and he flips it idly once, twice, and then shoves it back in its sheath.

“Well, you clearly don’t want to be here, so _get out_.”

“Fine,” Diego sneers. “But don’t expect me to answer the phone next time!” Then he’s turning on his heel and storming off.

He pretends not to hear Klaus’s frustrated shrieking follow him down the hall.


	2. 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sighing, Dave straightens up from the toilet he’s been scrubbing, and looks out the tiny window. It’s started to snow, now, and Dave hopes Klaus will be home soon. Dave goes through the apartment, closing the windows, and frowns at how dim the cloud cover has made it outside.
> 
> It’s getting late, now, and Klaus will be back soon, so Dave starts looking through the cupboards for something to make for dinner. Klaus will be cold and miserable when they get back, so Dave pulls out a can of their favorite soup and starts heating water for hot chocolate. Dave ignores the worried knot in his gut, Klaus will be back, they always are. Even if they’re angry, even if they never want to talk to him again, they’ll at least be back for their stuff.
> 
> Dave _hates_ fighting with Klaus.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here's part two! holy cow, guys, this section is about 2k, another third longer than part one, and is all Dave's POV!  
> please forgive any tense errors, I'm struggling to keep to one

Dave hates fighting with Klaus. He loves Klaus, with his whole being, and he just wants them to be safe and happy and _healthy_. The drugs are bad for them, and they all know it, and Klaus _is_ trying, has been doing really well. Dave shouldn’t have picked a fight when Klaus wanted to get high. They could have been using something way worse than E, could have been out on the streets, like they were now, like he _let them be_.

He hopes Klaus won’t relapse out there.

He starts cleaning as soon as it’s clear Klaus isn’t coming back immediately. He sweeps and mops and scrubs, throwing open the windows as the fumes get heavier in the apartment, despite the chill outside. The chill that Klaus is out in, without even their coat. He hopes Ben is keeping an eye on them, encouraging them to find somewhere warm to wait out the fight.

Sighing, Dave straightens up from the toilet he’s been scrubbing, and looks out the tiny window. It’s started to snow, now, and Dave hopes Klaus will be home soon. Dave goes through the apartment, closing the windows, and frowns at how dim the cloud cover has made it outside.

It’s getting late, now, and Klaus will be back soon, so Dave starts looking through the cupboards for something to make for dinner. Klaus will be cold and miserable when they get back, so Dave pulls out a can of their favorite soup and starts heating water for hot chocolate. Dave ignores the worried knot in his gut, Klaus will be back, they always are. Even if they’re angry, even if they never want to talk to him again, they’ll at least be back for their stuff.

Dave _hates_ fighting with Klaus.

As the water starts to boil, his phone rings. Fumbling for it, he doesn’t recognize the number, but if Klaus forgot their phone, too, they could be calling from anywhere. “Hello?”

“Mr. Dave Katz?” a polite, unfamiliar voice asks.

“Uh, yes, whom may I ask is calling?” Dave might have spent years on the streets of New York, but his Mama raised him proper.

“My name is Erika, I’m calling about a Klaus Hargreeves?”

Dave feels ice in his chest and turns off the burner on the stove. “Are they alright?”

“She was apparently hit by a car earlier today. Ms. Hargreeves is doing fine, awake and responsive, but we are waiting on some tests. She was insistent that we contact you.”

Dave bites his tongue at the misgendering, that isn’t the important issue right now. “I’ll be there as soon as I can. Thank you,” he says, voice cracking just a little. “Please let them know I’m on my way.”

Hanging up, Dave lets out a curse, but couldn’t afford to let this get to him right now. Dave couldn’t panic right now, Klaus needed him, and the nurse, or receptionist maybe, seemed to think they were alright, just waiting on some scans or something. So, he put on his boots and coat, and grabbed Klaus’s, and made his way to the hospital.

Arriving, he was pointed in the right direction, and finds Klaus in the middle of a hushed conversation with what looks like no one, but must be Ben. Klaus looks up, and their eyes are red, face wet. “Hey, doll,” he says softly, smiling a little.

“Davey!” Klaus exclaims, arms raising up, hands clenching in a grabbing motion. Dave goes straight to them, wrapping his arms around them as Klaus clings to him. “Davey, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have-- I’m an idiot, I love you so much, I’m so sorry.”

“I know, love,” Dave murmurs, rubbing their back gently. “I love you, too.” Klaus tucks their nose into the crook of his neck, and Dave can feel fresh tears leaking down their cheek. “It’s gonna be okay,” he promises. “You’re okay. What’re all the tears for, huh?”

Klaus presses closer, not answering with more than a shrug, and Dave accepts that. It’s been a long day, they must be sobering up, and they were probably bruised to hell from the accident. They stay like that for a little while, just holding each other close. When the door opens again, Klaus tightens their grip but relaxes when they see a doctor wheeling in some equipment.

“Good evening,” she says, smiling kindly.

“Hello,” Dave responds, and Klaus straightens up, looking at the screen she brought with her.

“Can I go home yet?” they ask.

“Almost,” she says, picking up their chart and scanning it briefly. “Your x-rays came back fine, and the CT was clear, but you were experiencing some abdominal pain, so we’d like to do an ultrasound, just to rule out any internal bleeding, alright?”

Klaus sighs but settles against the pillows. “Alright. Dave can stay, right?”

“Of course,” she says, smiling before turning to set up her machine. Dave gets off the bed, moving to a chair beside it, hoping he didn’t just sit on Ben, and takes Klaus’s hand, giving a soft squeeze.

Klaus is unusually quiet while they watch the doctor prepare the machine. Then she asks them to lay flat and lifts their hospital gown to expose their belly. Klaus has a tiny little paunch, hardly anything, really, but, as Dave considers it, that was weird, too, with how thin Klaus is. Dave hopes that isn’t a pocket of blood under the skin, that Klaus isn’t bleeding where they can’t see it.

The doctor applies some sort of gel to their skin, preemptively warning them that it would be a little cold, and presses a piece of plastic to it. She watches the screen as she moves it around. Dave can’t make anything out on the screen, so he watches her face instead, trying to get an idea how bad it is from her expression.

When she frowns slightly and leans in, squinting slightly, Dave feels Klaus’s hand tighten in his own. Dave squeezes back, hoping it’s reassuring enough, and glances at Klaus, who has turned to look at the other side of the bed, presumably at Ben. Dave strokes his thumb across their knuckles and looks back at the doctor, who has relaxed again, so that must be good, right?

After another minute or so, she turns to them with a smile. “Well, there appears to be no bleeding, which is great.” Dave’s shoulders slump in relief, and he hadn’t even noticed how tight they had become. Klaus turns back with a swallow and licks their lips. “However, if you look right here,” she says, pointing to a fuzzy blob on the screen that means nothing to Dave but makes his throat seize up, “we can see a little something.”

“What is it?” Klaus asks, clutching Dave’s hand so hard it hurts, but Dave would never complain.

“It’s a baby. Congratulations.”

Dave thinks maybe his heart stopped for a second. A baby? They were having a _baby_? It wasn’t impossible, obviously, but it had never been at the forefront of either of their minds. They weren’t ready for that.

They lived in a shitty apartment in a shitty part of town, with Klaus’s dead brother, and some months barely managed to scrape by. Klaus was still using, was probably still high as they received the news. They had talked about kids before, in the abstract. Klaus had confessed they were afraid they’d be a bad parent, after the way they were raised, and Dave had promised they would be a great parent. They had Dave, and Ben, and the three of them would work it out.

But the plan, the vague ideas they had, were for the future. Klaus was supposed to get clean, first. They had discussed adoption, and that couldn’t go through where and how they were living. Klaus wasn’t sure they wanted to go through a pregnancy, didn’t know how bad the dysphoria might get, and Dave understood that, respected it, and if Klaus couldn’t, he’d understand. They weren’t expecting this, not now.

Dave pulls his eyes from the screen to Klaus, whose eyes were already wide and wet, staring at the image. “Ho--” Klaus starts, but their voice seems to dissolve on their tongue. They swallow once more and try again. “How long…?”

The doctor’s smile dims a bit at their lack of enthusiasm, perhaps realizing what a shock it was. “You’re probably about eleven weeks along or so, and they seem okay, no obvious damage from the accident today.”

Dave hasn’t had a chance to even consider that. He hasn’t had time for anything more than racing thoughts that he can barely follow and a growing buzz in the back of his head. He can feel Klaus’s hands trembling against his own.

“Well,” the doctor says, shutting off the machine, and starts wiping Klaus’s stomach clean. “This is obviously a surprise. I’ll give two a few minutes alone, but I’ll be back with some information packets, alright?” With another smile, she left the room, closing the door behind her.

Dave is out of his chair and climbing into the bed with Klaus immediately, wrapping his arms around them and pulling them close. “I’ve got you, it’s gonna be okay,” he whispers. “You’re not alone, I swear. I’ve got your back here, babe.”

Klaus whines, grabbing at him. “What are we gonna do?” they whimper. “We can’t afford this, can we? We need a better place, Dave, and that means money, a baby means money, how are we--”

“Hey, hey, we’ll figure it out,” Dave soothes, rubbing their back. “Between us, we’ll manage.” Klaus is quiet for a moment. It’s nice, in some ways, when Klaus is like this. Quiet and clingy and vulnerable. He was only ever like this when it was just them, always putting on a front for everyone else, including Ben most of the time. Dave felt good, knowing Klaus felt safe enough to show their insecurities and anxieties like this. But that feeling was often overshadowed by the knowledge that Klaus was hurting in those moments, and Dave didn’t know what he could do other than hold them tight and never let go.

So that’s what he did. He holds Klaus for a long time, he’s not sure how long, but their head is tucked under his chin, and he hopes Klaus feels safe in his arms. Eventually, Klaus tugs away slightly, lifting his head to look at the closed door and nods. “Ben says she’s coming back,” they explain, and when they reach up to wipe their face, Dave beats them to it, cupping their face in his hands, gently brushing the wetness away with his thumbs.

“We got this, okay?” he whispers. Klaus nods, smiling, and the door opens.

The next half an hour is a bit of a blur of pamphlets and referrals as the doctor does her best to prepare them for what’s coming next. Finally, Klaus is allowed to dress and is discharged. They walk home, hands grasping tight, fingers tangled together desperately. Darkness has fully fallen, now, and when they get back to the apartment, Klaus makes their way directly to the bathroom, locking themself in. Dave hovers hesitantly until he hears the shower start. He glances around, unsure if Ben had followed Klaus in or not, and sighs. “I’m going to start some dinner. Keep an ear out for them, okay?” He has no idea if Ben heard him, and he knows he can’t let Dave know if something happens, but if Ben is paying attention, maybe he can at least be there for Klaus if they need someone.

Then he heads to the kitchen and puts on the soup.


	3. 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben doesn’t know exactly how long he spent wandering the park, getting lost in the people and trees. Eventually, snow starts falling, the grey sky dim but still lit by the afternoon sun, and he frowns. Klaus didn’t have a coat and was probably risking frostbite at that very moment. So, with a sigh, Ben closed his eyes, reached out for the thread that connected him to his sibling, and tugged.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me: okay Ben, your turn! what's next?  
> Ben: I wanna do it again  
> me: w-wha-  
> Ben: AGAIN
> 
> so, yeah, this and next update are Ben POV of Diego and Dave's POVs  
> I meant to post those together, but I need a break, and it's getting late, so I'm posting what I have.  
> This is also the shortest chapter at only 900 or so  
> I'm so sorry, but it's nano, and I'm gonna write whatever comes  
> I'm planning to fix it up in December and republish next year

After Klaus took off, Ben decided to spend his afternoon in the park, people watching. He couldn’t feel the chill in the air, but the park goers were all bundled up in coats and scarves. There were some kids having a playdate while their caretakers sat on the benches, gossiping, and a group of teens were trying to use the icy skate ramps, laughing uproariously when any of them face planted. He followed a college student around for a while, watching her catalogue the wintering plants.

Ben doesn’t know exactly how long he spent wandering the park, getting lost in the people and trees. Eventually, snow starts falling, the grey sky dim but still lit by the afternoon sun, and he frowns. Klaus didn’t have a coat and was probably risking frostbite at that very moment. So, with a sigh, Ben closed his eyes, reached out for the thread that connected him to his sibling, and tugged.

Opening his eyes, Ben spat out a swear, making Klaus start. The familiar sight of Klaus in a hospital bed, fluorescent lights glaring down on them, and Diego’s frustrated face is what greets him. He’s joined them mid-fight, just as Diego is telling Klaus, “The sooner you cooperate, the sooner you get out of here.”

Klaus was quiet, glancing at Ben, who crossed his arms and shrugged. Klaus wasn’t getting any help here, Ben didn’t even know what was going on, but he would hold his questions for now. Klaus wouldn’t respond with Diego there, anyway.

Klaus looks back at Diego and agrees to whatever he wants, probably getting him to listen to the doctors for ten minutes, before asking for his phone call. Diego reminds him that this is a hospital, not jail, and then demands to know who Klaus would even call. It was kind of a dick thing to say, but Diego hadn’t seen Klaus in ages, didn’t know what kind of progress he was making.

“Well, my boyfriend, for one,” Klaus titters. Dave would certainly be starting to worry soon. No, he had probably started worrying the minute Klaus left the apartment. Klaus had to be getting anxious to let him know he was okay.

Diego, instead of being sympathetic or understanding, not that Ben would ever expect that from any of their brothers, becomes suspicious, all but accusing Dave of hitting Klaus with his car while the nurses make their escape.

“You got hit by a car?!”

“Diego!” Klaus shouts, hitting the bed.

“Klaus, calm down,” Ben says, which stills his sibling, glancing in Ben’s direction. “He’s just worried about you. How many times _have_ you put up with that kind of shit for a place to stay? He wants to protect you, you know that.”

Klaus sighs and rubs his face tiredly. Once he finally looks up, Diego starts to offer Klaus a place to crash, which their sibling interrupts to deny it, letting his head fall back. Diego’s face darkens, twisting like he’d bitten a lemon, and spits his next words angrily.

“I suppose he’s out there slinging dope, too. What, does he give you a special discount that’s too good to turn down?”

That was a line that didn’t need to be crossed, but Ben still tries to calm Klaus, to remind him that Diego doesn’t have all the facts. Klaus shakes his head at Ben, fists clenched tightly in the sheets, as he shouts at Diego, defending Dave and asking why he doesn’t just go home.

Diego straightens up, dropping his crossed arms, and says, “Not gonna ask me to foot the bill, first?” Klaus swore and told Diego to leave. He acquiesces, turning on his heel, leaving with just a few last words. “Don’t expect me to answer the phone next time!”

Klaus lets out a screech of frustration once he’s gone, grabbing his pillow to muffle it before the nurses come running.

Once Klaus shouts himself out, Ben settles in a chair beside him. “So… Have a good day?”

“Oh, fuck off,” Klaus mutters, sinking into his bedding.

“Look, Diego was a dick, but he wasn’t totally out of line to think some of that, you know.”

“Thanks for the pep talk, buddy.”

“I’m not saying it was okay to accuse you guys like that, but it’s not that big of a stretch to believe it, Klaus. You _do_ have a history.”

Klaus groans and throws his pillow through Ben. “I got hit by a car, be nice to me.”

“Mmhm, and who decided to go for a walk in the street?”

“Shut _uuuup_ ,” Klaus whines, pulling the sheets over his head.

A minute later, a nurse comes in to take Klaus for the tests Diego had talked him into. “Can somebody _please_ call my boyfriend?” he asks. She nods and writes down the number, promising to pass it along to someone who could get in touch. Klaus nodded, thanking her with a little smirk, and followed her along to the test rooms.

During the tests, Ben filled Klaus in on his day at the park, just to give him something to focus on other than the gnawing anxiety over Dave. Back in his room, they have more freedom to talk, and Ben asks for more details.


	4. 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “He literally told me not to call again.” Klaus is laughing now, a wet sound in the back of his throat. “That seems to be a pretty clear write-off.” He rubs his face again, leaving it red and damp, and sits up. “Oh well,” he sighs, smiling weakly. “He was bound to get fed up eventually. Gotta give him credit for hanging in there this long.”
> 
> “Klaus--”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, please be sure to note the new tags!  
> There is casual mention/discussion of trading sexual favors for drugs in the past  
> Also! Reviewing my notes, I realized that at this point, Dave and Klaus are living in a motel, not their own apartment yet  
> Finally, Ben had a couple odd reactions to Klave's affectionate touches and I don't know why? I get the vibe he's like just a liiiiittle uncomfortable and idk if a) he's ace b) he doesn't like PDA c) he's uncomfortable watching his sibling be privately intimate or d) it's just my ace ass going 'ew' on reflex.

“I just-- Did he have to be such an asshole?” Klaus complains as he wraps up his story. “I’m not stupid enough to stay in a bad place if I don’t have to. Does he really think I’d choose smack over safety?”

“Klaus, you have overdosed more times than I can count. You pretty routinely chose drugs over safety for a long time.”

Klaus huffs, turning to look down at his hands, inspecting his nails. “That’s different, I did that to myself. I’m not his baby sister anymore, I don’t need his overprotective, judgmental bullshit.”

“You know that’s just how Diego shows his love, Klaus,” Ben chuckles.

“Mm, real great job he just did. Definitely felt the love just _oozing_ from his pores,” Klaus scoffs, lifting his hands in a small rainbow motion, raising his eyes to meet Ben’s.

“He offered you a place to stay.”

“And when I said no, he accused me of being a _crackwhore_ ,” Klaus snaps, breath hitching.

“ _Klaus_ ,” Ben gasps, all mirth gone at his words. “Klaus, he didn’t _say_ that!”

“May as well have,” Klaus sniffs, flopping down on his pillows and scrubbing at his eyes with his palms. “And, I mean, maybe I have swapped a blowie for a baggie before, but I never made a _habit_ of it.”

“I know that, Klaus,” Ben sighs. “Don’t let him get to you. You know he didn’t mean it. He’s always been there when you need him.”

“I just--” Klaus’s voice cracks. “Would it kill him to just hear me out for once? To just _listen_ to what I’m saying? He hasn’t had to show up like this in almost a year! Is it really that hard to think I might be doing better?”

Ben watches his shoulders tremble with his breaths. “That’s just it, Klaus, he _hasn’t_ seen you in a year. He hasn’t seen the progress you’ve made, all he has is the past to base his judgements on.”

“What if he was right? He would just walk away like that?”

“He wouldn’t, not if he really thought you were in trouble.”

“He literally told me not to call again.” Klaus is laughing now, a wet sound in the back of his throat. “That seems to be a pretty clear write-off.” He rubs his face again, leaving it red and damp, and sits up. “Oh well,” he sighs, smiling weakly. “He was bound to get fed up eventually. Gotta give him credit for hanging in there this long.”

“Klaus--” Ben starts, but his words are interrupted by the door opening. They look up, and there’s Dave, smiling in that soft way that makes Ben fake-gag.

“Davey!” Klaus exclaims, making grabby hands at him, and Dave obediently approaches, settling on the bed and hugging him tight. Klaus starts babbling out apologies, and Ben sits back, trying to not listen to the quiet words the two exchange. When the door opens, a doctor stepping in, Klaus’s first question is if he can leave.

“Almost,” she says. Looking at his chart, she tells them that his tests so far look fine, but she wants to do an ultrasound to check for internal bleeding. They’re all quiet as she works, Ben murmuring to Klaus that it’ll be alright, even if she finds something, they can fix him up. Ben nearly sags in relief when she reports that that scan looks clean, but then she’s pointing out something else, and if Ben had blood, it’s pressure would be skyrocketing.

She announces that Klaus is pregnant with a smile and a happy lilt to her voice, congratulating the couple, and silence blankets the room heavily. Ben’s thoughts are scattered, bouncing from fragment to fragment, unable to latch onto anything coherent until Klaus’s voice breaks through, pulling him back into focus.

The doctor tells them he’s about eleven weeks along, and that the baby appears healthy, then excuses herself to give them some time to take it all in. Ben follows quickly, stepping through the wall just as Dave gets Klaus cradled to his chest.

He stays in the hall for a while, letting them be and watching for her return. The hall was fairly quiet, only a few people meandering around. Someone about Ben and his siblings’ age was pacing, while an older woman, perhaps their mother or an aunt, sat on an uncomfortable looking bench, obviously waiting for some sort of news. A pair of teenagers were laughing from one of the nearby rooms, gossiping about some celebrity or other.

Eventually, the doctor reappears, and Ben slips back through the door. “Klaus,” he says, drawing his attention. “She’s coming back.” Klaus nods and passes the message on to Dave, who then puts his hands on Klaus’s face so _tenderly_ it almost really makes him gag, and wipes away his tears.

After the doctor handed them a stack of pamphlets and briefly explained what they’d be able to find inside, the three of them started the walk back. It was quiet, Ben following a few paces behind, giving them a bit more privacy, but it didn’t seem like they were saying much. Klaus headed straight for the shower and Dave, after pausing awkwardly for a moment, asked Ben to keep an ear out while he started cooking soup on the hot plate.

Ben sighs, leaning against the bathroom door but not phasing through. He listens to the sound of water beating down and hopes Klaus isn’t having a panic attack over this. Ben honestly can’t say _how_ Klaus might react. Ben hadn’t really gotten the dysphoria when he first started following Klaus around. They were seventeen, and hadn’t seen each other in a couple of years. He hadn’t understood the binding, and the first time he watched Klaus use a needle, it was for T he’d gotten on the street.

Klaus stopped getting the T after he got hooked on something else the needles were used for, but he was still wrapping ace bandages around his chest, which was bad for him. But of course, when Ben told him so, trying to get him to stop, to at least take breaks, Klaus just laughed, asking, “When’s the last time I did something good for me?” He had cackled so long and hard, high out of his mind, that he threw up on his own shoes.

As far as Ben understood it, Klaus’s dysphoria was generally not too bad, spiking now and then, sometimes with his... _cycle_ , other times at the whims of circumstance, or triggered by a particular interaction or other. Ben couldn’t predict it, and he didn’t think Klaus could either, but Dave was always prepared with attention and affection and Klaus’s favorite comforts the instant he expressed he was feeling down.

But Ben imagines that between new hormones and whatever body changes might come, this would be rough on him. If he even wanted to go through with it. And _that_ was none of Ben’s business, but he’d be there to support Klaus either way, and so would Dave.

He’s drawn from his thoughts when the shower shuts off. Now he can hear Klaus’s shaky breathing and muttered words that he can’t quite make out. He seems alright, so Ben waits for him to come out on his own, moving to lean against the opposite wall.


	5. 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “What if I completely fuck them up?” Klaus blurts. “I didn’t exactly have a great role model growing up! All of my siblings are emotionally stunted and complete train wrecks in one way or another, myself included, what can I offer a tiny new life?”
> 
> “You are not your father, Klaus,” Dave points out, gently drawing him into a hug. “You got screwed over as kids, it’s true, but you don’t have to repeat his mistakes. Plus, you’ve got Ben and me to help you when you have trouble.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This section was tough, and it's definitely ROUGH, however it's the most I've written in one sitting, breaking 2k, about 400 of which didn't make the cut  
> This was basically me just word vomiting and hoping to find something worth using in it  
> Please keep in mind this is a first draft and forgive any odd mood shifts that I may have failed to smooth out as I cut-and-pasted this chapter

The rest of the night is quiet, and when Dave gently asks if Klaus is ready to talk, they shake their head and whisper, “Can we wait? Just til the morning, please?”

“Of course,” Dave murmurs, kissing their forehead, and squeezes his arm just a little tighter around them. “I’ve got your back on this, Klaus, a hundred percent.”

“Thanks,” Klaus sighs, relaxing again against Dave. They’re curled together in bed, Klaus’s head resting on Dave’s chest, and the television drones on in front of them, but neither had been taking anything in. The evening had been quiet, void of Klaus's usual rapid-fire speech, their laughter, the inane questions they sometimes asked, just to get Dave talking. Instead, the scrape of plastic spoons on plastic bowls and the low murmur of the TV were the only sounds between them for a long while. Klaus closes their eyes as Dave begins combing his fingers idly through their hair.

Klaus let their mind wander again, considering the options. They weren’t _against_ having kids, but Klaus hadn’t planned to get pregnant. This was a lot of responsibility being dropped on their shoulders, and they didn’t even have a permanent address or health insurance. How were they going to afford any of this? Their thoughts spun until their eyes slid shut and they began to drift off.

The TV was mumbling somewhere behind them, dim lights moving behind their eyelids, but Klaus’s waning attention was drawn to the steady beat of Dave’s heart under his ear, a reminder that they were together in this, that Klaus didn’t have to figure everything out alone. Things would be okay.

Klaus wakes some hours later to the smell of coffee, opening his eyes blearily just as Dave sits beside him. “Good morning,” he says cheerfully, holding a cup out for Klaus.

Klaus hums, taking the cup carefully and lifting his head to take a sip. “I love you,” he says gratefully, smiling up at him.

“Mm, I love you too, but that is unfortunately decaf,” Dave admits, patting Klaus’s hip in consolation.

Klaus pouts and plays betrayed, draping his free hand over his eyes and tipping his head back. “How could you, Dave?”

“Oh, I don’t know,” Dave sighs, raising his eyes to the ceiling thoughtfully. “But perhaps I could make it up to you?”

“Oh?” Klaus lifts his arm to look at Dave again, watching a playful smirk spread across his face. “Make it up, huh? Did you have something in mind?”

“Well,” and Dave’s voice drops just a little bit, sending a shiver down his spine, “I’m open to suggestions.”

“You could at least _pretend_ to be ashamed that I’m still here,” Ben says.

“Oh, sorry Benny, didn’t see you,” Klaus replies, glancing in his brother’s direction, but watching as Dave’s face lit up warmly. “Look, Dave’s plenty embarrassed for both of us, now.” Dave glances towards the bathroom, but his eyes don’t come close to landing on Ben, and Klaus laughs, reaching to pull Dave in by his collar and kiss him, soft and slow. “Maybe I’ll have to take a rain check on that, mkay?” Dave nods, blinking dazedly and reaching up to rub his face, trying to diffuse a bit of the heat from under his skin.

“Oh, no, don’t stop on my account!” Ben huffs. “Please, carry on, I’ll just go pretend I don’t exist for an hour.”

“Stop your whining, we’re stopping, yeesh.”

Dave gets up from the bed, then, returning with a pair of donuts. Klaus lights up, seeing his favorite, and happily takes it with a bright “Thank you, Davey!”

“You’re welcome, doll,” he replies, settling beside him with his own donut and coffee.

“Do you work today?” Klaus asks through a mouthful of donut.

“Not til this afternoon. Did you have an appointment today?”

“Nothing scheduled, but the phone could ring any time.”

After another moment, Dave takes a deep gulp of his coffee. “We should talk about it. I’d like to at least know what you’re thinking before I have to leave. And I need you to know where I stand.”

Klaus sighs, shoving the last bite of donut in his mouth.

“Alright, that’s my cue,” Ben says, heading for the door. “I’ll be back for lunch, you can fill me in later, alright?”

“Ben, you don’t--”

“No, this is between you two, I’m just gonna take off. Bye.” Ben disappears with a peace sign before Klaus can respond.

“...well okay, then. Bye.” At Dave’s curiously lifted eyebrow, Klaus explained, “He’s just giving us some space.”

“Okay. So. Would you like to start, or shall I?”

Klaus snorts. “Davey, babe, if you _know_ how you feel, then go right ahead, because, frankly, I have no idea.”

“Alright, well…” Dave shifts, turning slightly to more fully face Klaus and reaches for his hand. “First of all, I’m not going anywhere. I know a lot of people have abandoned you before, and I need you to know that I won’t. No matter what, we’re in this together, alright?”

Klaus nods, eyes pricking with tears of relief. He hadn’t wanted to think about it, but the fear had been lurking that maybe this was one thing too many.

“Secondly, I will support you, however I can, regardless of what we decide to do.”

“Even if I can’t… can’t go through with it?”

“I will stand beside you and hold your hand, no matter what,” he says again, squeezing lightly and catching Klaus’s second hand as well.

“But you, you want it, don’t you?” Klaus whispers, like he was afraid of someone overhearing.

“I want _you_ , happy and healthy, more.”

Klaus stares at him for a moment, heart racing because _god damn it_ , Dave loved him so much, and Klaus loved him, and sometimes it felt like his body wasn’t enough to contain it all. “I just… Dave, there is such a laundry list of things to consider and I-I don’t even know where to start,” he croaks, clenching his hands tighter around Dave’s.

“Well, why don’t you say the first thing to pop into your head, and we’ll work on that?”

“What if I completely fuck them up?” Klaus blurts. “I didn’t exactly have a great role model growing up! All of my siblings are emotionally stunted and complete train wrecks in one way or another, myself included, what can I offer a tiny new life?”

“You are not your father, Klaus,” Dave points out, gently drawing him into a hug. “You got screwed over as kids, it’s true, but you don’t have to repeat his mistakes. Plus, you’ve got Ben and me to help you when you have trouble.”

“A-and the drugs, if I go through with this, I have to quit, right now, cold turkey.”

“Mmhm…”

“That means n-no more breaks from the ghosts.” Klaus can feel his heart in his chest, and it’s not pleasant.

“You’ve been getting better and better, Klaus. You were sober almost two weeks before yesterday.”

“Barely!" Klaus cries, pulling away. "And two weeks isn’t the same as six months, Dave. The longer I’m sober, the harder it is. They mess with my sleep, and that would be bad for them, too.”

“Well, maybe it’s time to bring this up with Pam. She might be able to prescribe something safer.”

“What's she gonna prescribe, huh? Antipsychotics? I'm not psychotic, but they would _make_ me!”

"Klaus, I don't know, I'm just spitballin' here, babe. You don't have to do what she says, but maybe just talking it out would help."

Klaus groans, scrubbing his face with both hands. Maybe he was right. It had helped when he told Dave about the ghosts. Dave knew a little about how things were growing up, but not the full story, not the dirty, ugly details, and he couldn’t imagine sharing those with some _quack_ who thought she could just talk all his problems away. He had only seen Pam a few times, too, though she was kind enough to do it off the books, and while she was nice enough, Klaus wasn’t totally sold on the idea of therapeutic healing. But maybe it would be a bit relieving, just letting someone else know. “Yeah, okay, I’ll keep it in mind.”

Klaus leans back against the headboard, pressing his shoulder to Dave’s and wrapping their hands together. “What about money? How are we going to afford a baby? They need a lot of stuff, and a safe place to live, and food, not to mention all the doctor’s visits and medications.”

“We have a decent nest egg right now, enough for a deposit on a cheap place, and I could ask for some more hours at work. If that’s not enough, we’ll work it out. I could go hustle some pool, maybe,” Dave offers.

Klaus nods, considering. “I could get Ben to help me cheat at cards.”

“As long as you’re smart and safe about it,” Dave insists, dropping his head to rest on Klaus’s shoulder.

“And I could try to drum up some more business. It’s mostly been word-of-mouth, but a few well placed posters might make a big difference. I bet I could put one up in that Wiccan bookstore.”

“Great idea. Anything else buzzing around in your head?”


	6. 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “So… Are we doing this?” Dave asks softly, arms wrapped around Klaus’s waist.
> 
> “I…” Klaus hesitates for just a second, watching Dave, his eyes bright and happy, his smile warm and comforting, his whole face lit up with an anxious hope, and Klaus knows they could never say no to him. “Yeah, Dave. Yeah, I think we are.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alright! I've broken 9.6k, and Klaus was fairly well-cooperative today, and I'm happy enough with this chapter. It got me where I needed to go, but it'll take a lot of work in later drafts, I think, unless I start it later on and use some of this stuff as flashbacks/exposition. idk.
> 
> Anyway! Again, please note the tags, I'm trying to be as comprehensive as I can, but I don't know exactly what all will come in the future. Also, the rating may go up to Explicit, but I'm unsure if I should post any of that here. If readers are interested in the pr0n, just lemme know and maybe I'll be brave enough to post.
> 
> Also, the therapy depicted here is very bare-bones and not representative of actual therapy

Klaus still has concerns about their own ability to go through with the whole process. Dysphoria had a way of creeping up out of nowhere, sometimes, and the drugs did a decent job of muffling that as well as the ghosts. But doing this meant no more drugs. Not just no drugs, but no alcohol, no cigarettes, he’d have to stop them all cold turkey, and Klaus didn’t know if that was possible. What coping mechanisms would they have left?

By the time Dave left for work that day, they had decided to take some more time to think about their options, and had been convinced to talk to Pam about it. It took an entire session to explain and prove his powers, and another to convince her that he honestly wanted to get clean but seriously needed some sort of chemical help to stay sane.

Over the next few visits, Pam heard him out and came up with a potential treatment plan.

“Now, I can’t say these will help the way the illicit drugs did, but it should help you feel less anxious.”

“I don’t see how that will _help_ , though,” Klaus huffs, biting at his nails.

“Well, it may let you get some more sleep. This isn’t a perfect solution, but it’s a starting place, so we can figure out which direction we should go.”

Klaus grunts, shrugging. “Is it safe? For the baby?”

Pam nods, leaning toward her desk and picking up a folder. “I’ve got information here that you can look over, but what we’re starting with should be perfectly fine. If it isn’t working, we’ll try something else, and after the pregnancy, we can try something stronger if we need to.”

“Right,” Klaus hums, taking the folder and flipping through it. “How much is this gonna cost?”

“Well, with a generic brand it’s cheaper, but without insurance it’ll still be pricey.”

Klaus nods, closing the folder again. “Great.”

“You said you had put in an application, any luck with that yet?”

“We’re having some trouble without a permanent address,” Klaus sighs, leaning back. “Dave thinks he found a place, though. He scheduled a tour this weekend.”

“That’s good, having a place of your own will go a long way to helping with all of this, Klaus.”

~~

The apartment is tiny, just one bed, a half-bath, and the living area/kitchenette, but they don’t need anything more than that, not now at least. Maybe in a few years they could upgrade to something better, in a nicer part of town. Today, though, it was cozy, and Klaus could fix anyplace up with a few decorations.

“So what do you think?” Dave asks when the landlord gives them a minute to discuss.

“Well, it’s not _perfect_ , but… It’s enough, I think. It’s a start,” Klaus answers, standing in the middle of the main room, looking around for water damage.

“It’s kind of a dump,” Ben comments, leaning against the fridge.

“Okay, well, thank you, Ben, for stating the obvious. Unfortunately, as long as there’s no black mold, I think this is the best we can afford.”

“Ben doesn’t like it?”

Klaus sighs dramatically, linking their arm with his. “Oh, don’t mind him. We grew up too well-off, my siblings all expect much nicer accommodations.”

“Oh, fuck you,” Ben complains.

“Love you, too!” Klaus calls, waving one finger over Dave’s shoulder at him, laughing as Dave pulls them close to press a kiss to their temple.

“I’m gonna check the shower for that mold,” Ben says, rolling his eyes and disappearing.

“So… Are we doing this?” Dave asks softly, arms wrapped around Klaus’s waist.

“I…” Klaus hesitates for just a second, watching Dave, his eyes bright and happy, his smile warm and comforting, his whole face lit up with an anxious hope, and Klaus knows they could never say no to him. “Yeah, Dave. Yeah, I think we are.” They step just a little closer and press their lips to his, breathing in the scent of ink and grease. One hand slides up Dave’s side to grasp the back of his neck, and tips his head slightly, locking their lips together just right.

Dave takes a sharp breath of surprise before sinking into the kiss, hands tightening on Klaus’s waist. Klaus hums and lets their tongue tease his lips, getting him to open up at the exact moment Ben steps back in. “I don’t see-- Klaus, come on! I was gone for a _second_!”

Klaus ignores him, closing their eyes and melting into the kiss for another second. Then they catch Dave’s bottom lip between their teeth and lean back, letting it slide free, scraping the tender skin gently. “We’ll pick this up later,” he whispers, grinning at the way Dave had leaned forward, reluctant to break contact. “Ben is going to have a conniption if he catches us.”

“I did!” Ben whines.

Klaus flips him off again, hand hidden behind Dave where he couldn’t see. Dave always turned the sweetest shade of red when he realized Ben was there, and Klaus loved to see it, but sometimes Dave deserved to think they hadn’t been interrupted. They pull just enough away from Dave, tipping their head in the direction Ben had disappeared, and call out, like they can’t see their brother, “So how’s it look? No infectious molds?”

Ben sighed, rolling his eyes, but didn’t argue. “It looks okay, but there is some water damage.”

“Great! Ben says it all checks out.”

“Great,” Dave repeats, nodding in Ben’s general direction. “Thanks, Ben.”

Ben shrugs, not that Dave can see him, and Klaus reports, “He says you’re welcome.”

The landlord comes wandering back in a minute later, and asks, “Well, what do you think?”

They glance at each other for a moment before turning back, matching grins on their faces, and announce, “We’ll take it!”

~~

They move in a few days later, and with their new, permanent address, their insurance applications finally start moving. They don’t have much in the way of furnishings, the fridge and oven came with the place, and laundry is in the basement, but for the first few days, they were stuck sleeping on the floor, making a nest out of blankets (one stolen from the motel when they left, a couple others from shelter stays), until one of Dave’s coworkers mentions an old futon they were throwing out. It wasn’t the _best_ option, but it was better than the floor, and once they had a real mattress, it could double as a couch, instead.

They had gone thrifting for new, bigger clothes, and while Dave didn’t know the first thing about fashion, he still followed Klaus through the aisles, letting him pile every flowy top to catch his eye into Dave’s arms, waiting patiently while Klaus tried it all on, coming out with a new, untraditional wardrobe. It was a lot of mix-n-match of maternity clothes and oversized tops, but it would keep him dressed. Klaus insisted they get Dave some clothes, too, since he basically owned about three outfits, _including_ his work clothes.

Now the tiny closet in their shoebox of a room was filled with colorful outfits for _both_ of them. They had also picked up a tableware set for two dollars, though it was chipped and missing a few pieces, and a book for first time parents, which was already dogeared and highlighted to hell, but it was a relief to have something to point them in the right direction.


	7. 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They haven’t told either of their families. Dave’s parents don’t even know what state he’s in, let alone if he’s alive, and Dave seems content enough to leave it that way. And Klaus has no reason to reach out to their siblings. Klaus does wish he could tell Mom.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so, I didn't post yesterday, but I did write! it just was all basically useless, so I'm not posting it. today I have a skimming overview of the rest of the pregnancy bc it's hard and I wanna get to the meat of this (and most of this pre-canon stuff may end up as flashback/exposition in the final draft anyway). again, please note the tags! this chapter deals with Klaus's dysphoria, though it's not a long section or overly detailed, just one paragraph. You can't miss it, but you can skip it if you want. btw, Dave ran away from home in after HS to avoid getting enlisted by his family.
> 
> uhhhh I think that's all from me, next time should be baby's birth, and then we'll get to the canon events!

Klaus performs seances to make money, raking in a fair amount, but not as much as Dave with his steady, fairly-decent-paying job, which he almost works full time. And Klaus was right, putting up a couple of ads in the local Occult Shoppes™ had boosted business. Being sober made it easier to call spirits to him, but Klaus still didn’t have a great track record at banishing them, though he was improving. The seances were good practice, and his powers were getting stronger. Unfortunately, he was losing sleep to the spectres following him around, long after their loved ones had paid and left. The drugs had been the easiest way to knock himself out, and he couldn’t do that anymore.

He’s sixteen weeks along when Klaus finally gets his hands on the medication Pam had prescribed, and he immediately pops the first dose, with a fake-cheerful, “Here goes nothin’!” He doesn’t notice any change for a while, but that is to be expected, Pam said these could take weeks to really make a noticeable difference in his mood. Not that Klaus felt it was his _mood_ that needed fixing, but alright.

Another week later, however, Klaus _did_ notice something unusual: there were fewer ghosts around than usual. At first, he didn’t think much of it, just counted it as a lucky break for once. But the longer he took the pills, the less intrusive the ghosts seemed to be. He could still summon them for seances, at least as well as he ever could, but it took a little more effort sometimes. On the upside, they didn’t seem to hang around so much anymore, and he was hardly picking any up just walking down the street.

When he brings it up to Pam, around week twenty, she guesses it might be some sort of neuro-something or other that the meds are messing with, similarly to the way the real drugs do, but less severely. It’s an incredible relief to realize there was something that might actually help without killing him, but it was also painful to realize that, if he had gotten some help when he ran away, instead of self-medicating, he could have avoided a whole lot of pain. (passing up that pain would mean passing up Dave, though, and Klaus would take anything he’d gone through before all over again, just for a few more minutes with Dave)

Klaus’s dysphoria has never been as bad as it gets through the next weeks. He’s swollen and tender in the strangest places, and it leaves him self-conscious and uncomfortable at the suddenest turn. Binding is virtually impossible, and not particularly safe at this point, and the pregnancy hormones and weight gain are definitely rounding out his face, making him look more like the pudgy-cheeked tween he was when he left home. He feels _ugly_ for the first time. He’s felt undesirable, before, felt dirty and used and worthless, but this is new. Looking in the mirror and hating what he sees, not recognizing his own body, is excruciating.

But he keeps these feelings to himself. It’ll pass, he just has to get through this, they’re committed to having a family, he can’t change his mind now. Once it’s over, he’ll look like _him_ again.

When Klaus is six months clean, heavily pregnant at eight months, Dave comes home with a box of Klaus’s favorite chocolates to celebrate. Klaus sniffles, having had a bit of a bad day, but not terrible, and smiles, setting the box aside to pull Dave into a kiss. “Thanks. You always know just what I need.”

“Well, I try, anyway,” Dave hums, settling on the futon with them, wrapping his arms around Klaus’s shoulders and leaning into his side. They finally have an actual mattress in the bedroom, so the futon is in the open living area, which has a few baby supplies piled against one wall.

They haven’t told either of their families. Dave’s parents don’t even know what state he’s in, let alone if he’s alive, and Dave seems content enough to leave it that way. They’re back in Texas, and between their UltraPatriatism and expectations of Dave as a Good Christian Boy, they’d probably be disappointed anyway. And Klaus has no reason to reach out to their siblings. Luther is on the moon, Diego and Allison both told him not to call, and Vanya had written a lot of things in her book about them, about Ben, and Klaus just doesn’t think they can face her, even though it has been nearly four years. And there was no way in hell they would tell _Reginald_.

Klaus does wish he could tell Mom. She’d be so happy for them. But she physically couldn’t keep a secret from Dad, so it was best not to try. Maybe someday. He didn’t want to keep his new family a secret, but introducing any of them to what he has now could ruin it. They might scare Dave off, maybe do it on purpose, might try to take the baby, and that was unacceptable. He could not risk that.

So their families were left in the dark.

When Klaus goes into labor, he still doesn’t intend to tell any of them. Unfortunately, Diego’s name is right under Dave’s in his contacts and, in his rush, with shaky hands, Klaus may have tapped the wrong one.

If he’s surprised to hear his brother’s voice on the other end, Diego is angry to hear Klaus’s.

“What?” he snaps once he realizes who it is that’s called him.

“O-oh, um, h-hey, Di,” Klaus stutters, wide eyes turned on Ben in panic, because he does not need to get yelled at right now, nor does he need Diego turning up pissed off and making assumptions.

“What do you _want_ , Klaus?” Diego growls.

“Uh, y’know, actually, I-I don’t, uh…” Klaus swallows hard, wincing at another tight pain across his back. He knows he doesn’t sound good, his breathing his harsh and quick, and he apparently can’t string together enough words to make a sentence.

“Are you fucking serious?”

“Diego, I-I can expl--” Klaus isn’t sure he _wants_ to explain, that Diego _deserves_ an explanation, but he can’t help but defend himself, especially since he really _isn’t_ fucked up this time.

“No,” Diego spits. “I told you last time, don’t bother.” Then he hangs up, leaving Klaus with an empty dial tone for a long moment, Ben staring, unsure how to respond to that conversation. Klaus doubles over with another contraction, moaning, and Diego is driven from their minds, all focus on calling Dave now.


	8. 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben moves closer to the bed, apparently leaning over the side opposite Dave.
> 
> Klaus sputters out a gasp and demands, “You take that back!” but they’re already laughing, so whatever Ben said wasn’t serious. Dave watches Klaus swat at the empty space Ben is occupying, as he often does, only to see their hand stop mid-air, like it had met resistance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dave POV again! I've missed this sweet Texas boy, he is just so soft and love Klaus.  
> Baby is here!!  
> There is mention of dysphoria again, but just a couple sentences, and it's more like 'so glad they aren't feeling bad rn' than anything else.  
> I don't think I need to add any tags, the birth itself is not in the text.

Dave usually kept his phone on silent, in the locker he'd been assigned in the breakroom, but as Klaus’s due date approached, Dave started carrying it with him on the clock. Everyone at work knew the baby was coming soon, because it was all Dave has been talking about for weeks. So when Klaus's ringtone begins to chime, he all but drops what he's holding in his rush to answer.

"Klaus?" he answers breathlessly.

"I-I," they gasp, and Dave is already turning to head back to the breakroom and clock out.

"Deep breaths, doll. Are you okay?"

"It _hurts_ , Dave," they whine, and Dave starts running. “Why didn’t anyone tell me it would hurt so much?”

"I'll be right there, stay calm, listen to Ben. Is the baby coming? Or does something feel wrong?"

Klaus takes a shaky breath, letting it out slowly, and Dave was sure Ben was counting it out for them. "It's time, I don't think anything's wrong, but--"

Klaus cuts off with a whine as Dave punches out. "Babe, I'm on my way, alright?"

"Okay," Klaus whimpers, sniffling.

Dave hears someone call after him, and he shouts back, "Baby's comin'!" without looking up.

A round of congratulations and good luck rises up, but Dave just waves as he hurries out the door.

~~~

Hours later, Klaus is a sweaty, crying mess, but they’re still beautiful, absolutely radiant, honestly, as the doctor passes the tiny, fragile body to them. “Congratulations,” she says. “A healthy baby girl.”

Dave starts crying, too, his chest swelling with emotion. She’s so small, her face red and wrinkled, and she is demonstrating just how strong her lungs are. Dave sits on the edge of the bed, leaning in to kiss the side of Klaus’s face before resting his head on their shoulder, grinning down at their daughter. “She’s perfect,” he murmurs, reaching to stroke his fingers along the crown of her head. She doesn’t have much hair, but what is there is dark like Klaus’s. “I’m so proud of you.”

“Thanks,” Klaus croaks, leaning their head against his. “I worked really hard on her.”

“I know you did, doll.” Dave kisses their shoulder, watching as a nurse comes closer to help Klaus get her latched, which stops the screaming, and Dave is relieved to feel Klaus remain relaxed against him. The dysphoria had been getting to them more and more the longer the pregnancy went on, not that Klaus would talk about it until they were so overwhelmed that they broke down at the smallest thing, and Dave wasn’t sure how well breast feeding would go over. It was encouraging that Klaus was responding well, at least for now.

They watch her eat, doctors and nurses shuffling around them, both blind and deaf to anything but the precious bundle in Klaus’s arms. Eventually, they’re left alone, though Dave imagines Ben is around somewhere nearby if not in the room with them. He was definitely there during the labor, Klaus kept muttering at him, which the doctors and nurses thankfully didn’t seem to notice. Until they shouted at Ben, but they were more occupied with the crowning baby than trying to figure out _who_ Klaus was yelling at.

“I love you,” Dave whispers, still staring down at the now sleeping infant. He lifts his head to look at Klaus. “I love you both, so much.”

Klaus smiles and tips their head, pressing their foreheads together. “We love you, too.”

Dave bumps his nose against theirs gently, and really hopes Ben isn’t in the room because he must have the dopiest look on his face. Then he kisses Klaus, because he loves them, because they love him, because they’ve done something incredible together, just because he _can_ , and it’s soft and slow and damp and perfect.

The kiss breaks earlier than Dave would like, but Klaus is turning towards the door. “Hey Bennito! Come say hi!” Klaus beckons, lowering their voice halfway through when the baby fidgeted. Dave can’t see Ben, but has an idea of where he is based on where Klaus is looking. Ben moves closer to the bed, apparently leaning over the side opposite Dave.

Klaus sputters out a gasp and demands, “You take that back!” but they’re already laughing, so whatever Ben said wasn’t serious. Dave watches Klaus swat at the empty space Ben is occupying, as he often does, only to see their hand stop mid-air, like it had met resistance. Dave glances at Klaus, whose eyes have gone wide in surprise.

A moment later, Klaus jerks, pulling their arm back, and cradles the baby closer, hissing at Ben. “Holy shit, you are _so_ lucky she can’t hear you! Calm down!”

“Wwwhat’s goin’ on, guys?” Dave asks uncertainly.

"Uhhhh, so I just… hit Ben. You may have heard me yelling at him earlier? He gave me his hand, and then I squeezed it so hard his spirit fingers broke.” There is a momentary pause, possibly Ben interjecting, and then, “He started flipping his shit, but like, I was _kind_ of busy.” This last part is directed at the empty chair on the other side of the bed. Another pause, before Klaus groans. “Look, obviously something’s up but can it _please_ wait until I’ve gotten some sleep?”

Dave squeezes Klaus’s waist gently, hooking his chin over their shoulder. He smiles down at her again, breath nearly taken away at the sight. Klaus and Ben talk a little more, but Ben seems to have agreed to wait to press whatever the issue is with Klaus’s powers.

After a couple minutes, Klaus perks up a bit, pulling the baby up a little higher, and tells Ben her name. “Grace Kelly Katz.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ben: *looks at Grace Kelly* I thought babies were supposed to be cute, but she looks just like you.
> 
> Klaus: hoW DARE
> 
> Dave: ???
> 
> Also Ben: hold my hand
> 
> Klaus: *crushes it*
> 
> Ben: holy shit holy shit did you SEE THAT???
> 
> Klaus: *birthing a child* not NOW, Ben!!!!


	9. 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Klaus,” he chokes, eyes glued to their father’s photograph.
> 
> “What?” Klaus asks, finally getting the spoon into Gracie’s mouth.
> 
> “It’s Dad,” he breathes, pointing. Klaus twists around, eyes widening at the scene, and drops Gracie’s spoon.
> 
> “ _Oh shit_.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, it's Ben's POV again! Next time we'll actually get the house and the others!  
> I don't have a whole lot to say about this chapter, except Ben did the thing again, and idk why he's being so weird bc he has definitely seen Klaus in way dirtier/kinkier situations and -- omg it's about the _romance_ , I'm so dumb, thanks brain, I'll file that away for later consideration  
> Please enjoy the news of Reggie's death
> 
> Oh! Also, I thought I would mention, I'm on Tumbr at cheydoesfandom if you're interested.

“Wheeeere’s Uncle Ben?” Gracie giggles, squealing with laughter when Ben pops into visibility with a soft shout of, “There he is!” It’s like extreme peek-a-boo, and only Ben can play. He goes invisible again, cooing out the same question, and snaps back to visible with a gasp. Gracie shrieks happily, clapping her chubby little hands excitedly.

Over the past six months, after giving the couple some time to adjust to actually having another living, breathing, eating human being to look after, they had been testing Klaus’s powers. The medication had seemed to dull the random ghosts, but Ben’s connection to him was apparently getting stronger. The working hypothesis was that, during the birth, his powers were spiking and he’d unlocked something new, but it was anyone’s guess, really.

After weeks of testing (Klaus refused to call it training, and Ben couldn’t blame him), he managed to figure out how to do it on purpose. Keeping Ben corporeal for more than a few minutes was tiring, though, and it was easier to make him able to touch Klaus than anything, or anyone, else.

Making him _visible_ to others was much easier, but he still couldn’t hold it for more than a few hours. Which was plenty enough time for Ben to play with his niece every day. He hadn’t managed to master both at the same time, yet, but with enough work they would get there, and then Ben could hold her without any panic.

Ben pops in and out of her vision once more, before Klaus comes over to the table with a bowl of mashed veggies in his lightly-glowing hands. “Alright, Uncle Ben, playtime’s over, it’s time for a certain little movie star to eat,” he says, settling into the chair next to her. He slides Gracie closer, grinning at his daughter. “Yes it is, it’s time for lunch,” he says, pitching his voice up a little. “Are you hungry?”

Gracie flails her tiny arms, reaching for the spoon Klaus was lifting. “Oh, you want some peas and carrots, huh?” he teases, then brings the spoon down, offering it to her. She kicks her feet and turns away, whining.

“Come on, now, I know you’re hungry,” Ben coaxes. “Don’t you wanna be a good little princess for Baba?” Gracie blows a raspberry and knocks her hand against the spoon, smearing the veggies across it. Ben snorts and Klaus glares at him, scooping up another spoonful and letting the glow fade from his hands, Ben fading with it.

Ben turns away, stifling his snickering, and puts his attention on the news playing in the background. “Come on, Gray, just try it, you liked this yesterday!” Klaus begs.

Ben’s mirth disappears an instant later when a familiar face fills the television screen. “--nd dead in his ho--” an anchor was saying, and if Ben had to breathe, he might have been having trouble.

“Klaus,” he chokes, eyes glued to their father’s photograph.

“What?” Klaus asks, finally getting the spoon into Gracie’s mouth.

“It’s Dad,” he breathes, pointing. Klaus twists around, eyes widening at the scene, and drops Gracie’s spoon.

“ _Oh shit._ ”

~~

“Of course I’m going,” Klaus laughs. “He was a _huge_ douchewaffle, and I’m not going to pass up the chance to give his cold, dead body a good kick. Besides, he was _loaded_ , even if he didn’t put me in the will, which, realistically, is a _complete_ toss-up, I can probably talk the others into giving me some of it, or raid Daddy’s office for something to pawn.”

“If you’re sure,” Dave concedes. Ben is watching over Gracie, who’s in her bed, pretending he can’t hear the others in the next room. “Do you want us to come with you?”

“Oh, god, no,” Klaus gasps. “I can’t subject you to that mess.”

“Klaus,” Dave sighs, and Ben can just picture the cocked eyebrow.

“No, Dave, seriously, it’ll be a huge disaster, and I don’t need you getting involved in all their shit. I promise, I’ll be fine, Ben’s coming, too, and it’s just a few hours for the ceremony and maybe the will reading, that’s it.”

Ben doesn’t hear anything else for a little bit, so either they’ve lowered their voices or they’re making out, and Ben just hopes there aren’t any new stains on the futon when he goes back out there. Thankfully, a minute later he hears Klaus’s voice again.

“I don’t know! They could do _anything_. They all have so much dirt on me, I-I…” The rest of his sentence is quieter, but Ben can just make out the hum of his voice still talking.

“Klaus, you’ve been sober for a _year_ ,” Dave says. “They can’t just--”

“But they _might_ !” Klaus’s voice pitches and cracks, and Ben wonders just what he’s so worried about. “They _could_ ! Some of them _would_ try, and--” Klaus cuts off, and when he speaks again, Ben can’t make out the words anymore.

He can hear the rumble of Dave’s voice, too soft to understand, and then it's silent for nearly an hour. Eventually, there’s a whisper followed by shuffling, and the couple make their way into the room. Ben watches Klaus collapse on the bed, already asleep, and then Dave approaches to check on Gracie.

Ben makes his way out to give Dave some privacy with the baby, and spends the rest of the night trying to figure out just what it was Klaus thought the others might do. He’d mentioned them having dirt, but scaring Dave off would be a tall order, even for the Hargreeves siblings to fill.

~~

The morning of the funeral, only a couple of days later, Klaus is rushing about like a dead chicken, looking for something new every five minutes, and Ben would find it hilarious if they were going anywhere other than home today. He’s decided to dress to the nines, which for Klaus means a rainbow-sequin crop top and leather pants, with a feathery black coat that Ben definitely remembered him digging out of a dumpster about a year before he got pregnant.

He’s binding today, like he has been most days since he was able to start again. Ben guesses he was making up lost time, but he didn’t really dare to assume he understood anything about his sibling’s thought processes. Klaus’s makeup is light but obvious, the dark eyeliner and mascara making his eyes pop, though the shimmery eye shadow is a bit more subtle. His nails are painted red, and Dave had barely managed to get him to sit still long enough to carefully work a braid into his hair. It was messy, but they were still learning, determined to be ready when Gracie had enough hair of her own.

Now, Klaus is procrastinating, lingering in his goodbyes well after Ben had said his own, obviously anxious to leave Gracie behind, but unwilling to take her with them. Finally, Ben has to speak up. “Klaus, we’re going to miss the bus, we’ve gotta go.”

“Shit, alright, alright, Baba’ll see you later, pumpkin! I love you!” He kisses her face and she laughs, grabbing at his hair but not managing to catch hold. “Love you, too,” Klaus says, straightening up to kiss Dave, too. “I’ll call you later.”

“Okay, now get goin’. We’ll be here.”

With that, Ben waves goodbye as he fades when Klaus releases the hold on his visibility and they finally make their way out of the apartment and down the stairs to the bus stop.


	10. 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "You could at least wait and see if they’re willing to share if you really don’t get anything,” Ben says disapprovingly, leaning against the door with his arms crossed.
> 
> “Oh, yeah, I’m sure Di and Alli will be real keen to hand over a chunk of their reparations,” Klaus huffs, rolling his eyes. “And Luther won’t give up anything _he_ gets, it’ll be Too Important, whatever it is.”
> 
> “What about Vanya?”
> 
> Klaus snorts as the lock pops into place. “I doubt she’s getting much, either.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey guys! sorry about the delay, I wrote a LOT on the 10th (somewhere around 2500 I think, and a fair chunk is unusable at this time), but it was 230 AM the 11th and I had been up since 730 AM after going to bed at 530, so I couldn't be sure it was good enough to post. today was kinda busy and I only had time after midnight to check and upload, finally. there were a couple small edits made in chapter 9 about 12 hours after I posted, but it was just a couple sentences to clarify that Klaus is actively using his power to make Ben visible. I thought about putting this first section at the end of that chapter, since it's Ben POV again, but decided not to risk readers missing it.
> 
> but here we are, Klaus runs into 3 out of 4 of the others, Vanya will show up next time, and Ben thinks Klaus is being dumb and making bad decisions, but Klaus is just trying to protect himself and his new family from the old one, y'know?

Klaus sits at the back of the bus, as far from anyone else as he can get, and Ben sits beside him. He waits until the bus starts to move again to turn to Klaus. “So what’s the plan?”

“About what?” he asks.

“About… today? You haven’t seen anyone in years, are you planning to _tell_ them anything, or just take the money and run?”

“Oh, I would _love_ to just smash and grab if I can,” Klaus says, looking out the window, away from him. “But God knows it’ll be a whole production.”

“So you’re not gonna mention… anything?”

“What would I say?” he scoffs, rolling his eyes.

“That you got clean? That you fell in love and have a _kid_?”

Klaus shakes his head, staring hard out the window. “No, I’m not… I’m not getting them involved in this, it’s too risky. I’m gonna put the bastard to rest, take every penny I can get, and leave. Maybe at the next funeral.”

“Klaus, come on! Would you at least tell them about me? We can _prove_ it this time!” But only together, Ben couldn't do it alone.

Klaus groans loudly enough that a couple of other passengers glance back at him. He lowers his voice, rolling his head on his shoulders to look back at him. “Come on, Ben, why? We don’t _need_ them!”

“Well, maybe I _want_ them! I _miss_ them, Klaus, they’re our siblings.” Klaus rubs his face, whining. “Please, Klaus?”

“Uuugh, I’ll _think_ about it. If they show any signs of actually listening to or believing me about… anything.”

Ben huffs, crossing his arms, but doesn’t complain further. That’s the best he’ll get out of him for now, so he’ll take what he can get.

~~~

Klaus pauses at the gate of the mansion, Ben at his elbow, staring up at the place. “It’s been a long time,” Ben points out, very unnecessarily.

“Yup,” Klaus replies, popping the ‘p’. “Almost… fifteen years?”

“That sounds right,” Ben nods. “Are you ready?”

“Am I ever?” Klaus laughs, shaking his head, and reaches to open the gate. He gestures for Ben to go first and closes it behind them, then lets them both into the house. He and Ben walk in, taking a look around the entryway. It’s exactly as Klaus remembers, and he assumes the rest of the house is as well. Glancing at Ben, he shrugs and takes a deep breath, singing out, “I’m hooo~ooome!” Ben rolls his eyes, and a moment later Diego appears on the stairs. He pauses on the landing, staring at Klaus for a long moment, a look he can’t read on his face, then takes the stairs two at a time to greet him with a playful punch to the shoulder.

“Didn’t know if you’d show, thought you might be in a ditch somewhere,” he jokes, but it doesn’t land the way it might have a few years ago.

Klaus laughs, a little hollow to his own ears, but he thinks it’s enough to convince Diego. “Mm, no, sorry to disappoint, but, no ditches here,” he says, shrugging and taking a couple of sideways steps to move Diego out of his personal space.

“Well, great, that’s… just… great,” Diego manages, and Klaus is a little relieved to realize Diego is feeling just as awkward as he is.

“Uh, anybody else here?” Klaus asks, glancing around.

“Luther got back this morning, and Allison’s setting up her room to stay the night, I think.”

“And Vanya?”

Diego scowls. “She won’t show up if she knows what’s good for her,” he growls, plucking a knife from his vest to fidget with irritably. Klaus takes another step away.

“Okay, cool, um, if you don’t mind, I’m just… gonna… go. Someplace with less… pointy objects.” Klaus gestures vaguely up the stairs and Diego lets him go, heading towards the kitchen instead. Klaus heads upstairs, glancing around for Luther, but sees no sign.

“Where are we going?” Ben asks, following along.

“Uh, to ransack the place, obviously? You know Daddy dearest didn’t put either of us in will, and there’s so much shit in this place, Luther will never notice a few pieces missing.”

“Are you sure that’s the best idea?”

“No, but it’s all I’ve got, so it’s what I’m doing,” Klaus says, trying the handle of the office. It’s locked, so he plucks a bobby pin from his braid and sets to picking it. “Not like anyone will think it’s _weird_.”

“You could at least wait and see if they’re willing to share if you really don’t get anything,” Ben says disapprovingly, leaning against the door with his arms crossed.

“Oh, yeah, I’m sure Di and Alli will be real keen to hand over a chunk of their reparations,” Klaus huffs, rolling his eyes. “And Luther won’t give up anything _he_ gets, it’ll be Too Important, whatever it is.”

“What about Vanya?”

Klaus snorts as the lock pops into place. “I doubt she’s getting much, either.” 

He opens the door and walks in, looking around. The office is large, but not as huge as he remembers. He takes a moment to take in the decor, all exactly as it always was, and then approaches the book shelves and considers looking for any first editions, but decides that would take too much time and be too bulky to get away with. So he moves on to another shelf, this one decorated with knick knacks that are probably priceless, and starts filling his pockets.

“This is dumb,” Ben whines, still at the door. “They wouldn’t leave you with _nothing_.”

“Ha!” Klaus shoves another… paper weight? …into his pocket and turns towards the desk. “Yeah, right. I’m surprised Diego didn’t try to throw me out like he will Vee.”

Ben huffs, crossing his arms. “If you get caught--”

“I _won’t_ get caught if you keep a lookout!” Klaus hisses, ducking to look under the desk.

“I’m not,” Ben replies. Klaus rolls his eyes. Ben was just sour that Klaus hadn’t promised to tell the others about him. Why should he? He already did, more than one of them, more than once, and Vanya’s book did a pretty good job getting across how very much they did not believe him. And, anyway, even if they did, they wouldn’t be happy to have Klaus around any time they wanted to talk to Ben. The only reason any of them would _talk_ to Klaus would be to talk to _Ben_. And Klaus didn’t want to be stuck in that place. Maybe it was selfish, but it was how he felt. He’d rather not see them at all than only be called on to talk to the brother they liked more.

Klaus hums appreciatively when he finds a box inlaid with some sort of probably-valuable decoration. Pearl, maybe? Or ivory? What did ivory sell for? Oh well, it was perfect. “Jackpot,” he whispers, just before another voice startles him. Allison.

“Hey, sis!” he exclaims, straightening up, tucking the box into the waistband of his pants, hidden under his coat.

“Klaus,” she says, watching him with an eyebrow raised. “Everything alright?” she asks, glancing toward the desk he had emerged from under.

“Oh, yeah, just, uh, dropped my contact! But I found it, all good now,” Klaus babbles, hands flapping distractedly.

“You wear contacts now?” she says, both eyebrows lifted.

“Uh… yeah,” Klaus agrees, ignoring Ben shaking his head in the corner. Deciding it would be best to act happier to see her, Klaus plastered a smile on his face and hugged her. “It’s so good to see you, Alli! It’s been so long!” Nearly six years since he had gone to LA to meet Claire, only to be turned away at the door. Rumoured into going home, actually, for trying to convince her that Ben was with him.

Allison accepts the hug, but leans out of it pretty quickly, like she wants to avoid much contact. “You too, Klaus,” she says, scanning him up and down as her hands _discreetly_ check her pockets.

“Soooo, can you believe it? All of us here to celebrate, I mean, _mourn_ Dad’s passing,” Klaus says, trying to turn her attention away from inspecting him, and maybe get a laugh. He doesn’t want to start drama, there will be plenty of it later, and while his issues with Allison stung, as did the distrust she’d just displayed, since Grace Kelly came along, he better understood why she sent him away. They’d both do whatever it took to protect their daughters.

Allison snorts, rolling her eyes. “Yeah, it’s kind of wild. Could hardly believe it.”

“Well, you know how I know he really is dead? If he were still alive, _none_ of us would be allowed in here.” Allison smiles, nodding, and Klaus sits in the desk chair, swinging his legs to dangle over one arm. “This room was strictly for concocting new and inventive torments for us. No kids allowed.” He continues to play-mock their father, finally getting her to laugh and play along.

Even Ben has cracked a smile from his sulking corner, and then Luther has to burst in and totally ruin the vibe. “Get out of his chair,” he barks. Klaus looks up, eyes widening.

“Oh, wow, Luther, you’ve really… filled out.” He is _huge_ . Like, _insanely_ huge. _Inhumanly_ huge. Klaus doesn’t know what happened, but he imagines it wasn’t pleasant.

Luther just scowls, glaring until Klaus stands up. "Alright, alright, I'll just go, let you two catch up," he says, lifting his hands in surrender as he makes his way to the door. Luther grabs him when he walks past.

"Drop it," he growls.

"Ex- _squeeze_ me?" Klaus asks, tipping his head.

"You heard me."

"Oh. I'm sorry, is only Luther allowed to touch Daddy’s toys? He's dead, anything you _think_ I took," and this is a risky gamble, but if he’s lucky, he might get away with it, "isn't doing _him_ any good."

"Put it back, Klaus!" Luther snaps, tightening his grip and giving a little shake.

"Geez, al _right_!" Klaus cries, swatting at Luther's meaty hand. Once Luther lets go, he starts emptying his pockets onto the floor. "It was just an advance on our inheritance!"

He stalks out of the room, Ben at his heels and shaking his head. Once they are a fair distance down the hall, Klaus pulls out the box from his pants. "That'll fetch a pretty penny, dontcha think?" Ben rolls his eyes.

"Sure, Klaus," he sighs.

"Oh, come on, quit pouting. You remember what happened when I told them you were there before. And we haven't even seen Vanya, yet. I'm not going to have that fight _four_ times, Ben."

"Why does it have to be a fight at all? Just make me visible!"

"Visible or not, there will _still_ be a fight!" Klaus hugs the box to his chest, glancing down the hall, before heading towards his old bedroom. "Look, can we at least wait for the right moment? Like, when we're all together and maybe not at each other's throats."

Ben sighs again, but nods. “Yeah, alright.” They made their way to Klaus’s room, where he hid the box for later, and then headed downstairs. If Vanya wasn’t here yet, she would be soon, and he isn’t sure how he feels about seeing her.


	11. 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “So what brings you home, dear?” Klaus pauses, glass pressed to his lips, and looks her in the eyes. They lower the glass slowly.
> 
> “The funeral, Mom. Are you alright?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> holy heck, guys, sorry for the delay!!  
> my brother has been monopolizing the desktop for like 2 days  
> but here we are, and I'm still ahead on the word count at 22280 at the start of day 14!  
> more dysphoria in this chapter! I debated a bit about where, exactly, Klaus should switch from he to they in this chapter, and I'm still not 100% on it.  
> anyway, please enjoy!!

Klaus descends the stairs, passing Pogo at the bottom as he starts his way up. They exchange a look, Klaus nodding slightly, and he can feel the judgement in the old chimp's gaze. Maybe he was thinking about the last time Klaus had shown up, after Allison told him to go home, when he arrived confused and disoriented by the Rumour, only to grab any small thing he could find and bolt. And it isn't like Pogo and Luther were _wrong_ to think he'd be stealing, but the suspicion still smarts.

He gives a strained, toothy grin and continues on his way, boots thunking on the last few steps, and makes his way to the library. There was probably something worth pawning in there.

The first thing he sees, however, is his final sibling, Vanya, standing at a shelf and staring forlornly at some books. She looks up at his arrival, blinking her wide, doe eyes. And, wow, Klaus is not ready for this.

Seeing her brings to mind all the things she'd written about him, about all of them, and how she had felt _entitled_ to tell the entire world about his identity, an identity she didn't know the first _thing_ about. She's staring at Klaus, now, and his skin is starting to itch. Her eyes so wide and _sad_ and _how dare she_ \--

Klaus swallows the lump in his throat, one hand rubbing at the opposite arm as she breaks eye contact, which is a momentary relief, only for her gaze to sweep over the rest of him. Klaus nearly flinches, feeling exposed, like she could see right through him.

All Klaus can think, now, is how his outfit only reinforces her misconceptions, the braid being the only thing out of place in her imagined version of "him".

Suddenly, _finally_ , she opens her mouth to speak, and Klaus can't handle this. They can't talk to her when she thinks what she does, when she's said what she has, when she doesn't understand them but believes that she does. At least the others don't pretend.

"I've gotta go," they blurt, casting about for a reason and coming up empty, instead trailing off. They jerk one thumb over their shoulder and walk back the way they came, ignoring the soft, plaintive call of their name.

~~

Klaus is digging at the back of Allison's closet when Ben catches up, having dawdled behind a bit. They emerge with a skirt in hand and nod in approval, all signs of distress quashed and emotions smothered. No need to put their problems out in the open for everyone to see. Of course, hiding their feelings isn’t the same as not having them. Their chest feels tight, heart thundering and lungs constricted. They tell themself it’s just the binder, it’s a little tight today, no big deal, nothing to worry about.

"Klaus?" Ben broaches uncertainly. Klaus ignores him, instead flinging the fabric over their shoulder and returning to their childhood room, Ben trailing along. There, Klaus kicks off their boots and peels the leather from bare skin, before shimmying into the skirt. It helps some, the sway of smooth, soft fabric at their calves calming their nerves. "Hey, uh, no judgement, but… is there a _reason_ you've raided Allison's closet?"

“Is fashion not reason enough?” Klaus asks, examining their reflection. It’s clearly a piece of its time, but not terribly worn out, and the buzz of _wrongwrongwrong_ under their skin feels soothed, just a little. Ben doesn’t reply, instead just watching as Klaus discards the coat as well, frowning into the mirror. “What do you think? The top clashes, doesn’t it?”

Ben blinks, lifting his eyes to Klaus’s in the mirror. “Since when does that stop you?” he asks.

Klaus sticks their tongue out and then pulls the shirt over their head, dropping it on the bed. “Hmm. Better,” they say, shrugging. Their reflection looks more familiar, now. They still carry just a little bit of baby weight, but it hasn’t been nearly as disruptive of their mental health as it had been during the end of the pregnancy and the first months after. Klaus self-consciously tugs at the binder, trying to see if it could reach far enough down to hide it.

It can’t, so they pull the skirt up, overlapping the nude-colored fabric of the binder. Finally satisfied, Klaus brushes their hands down the skirt, smoothing out imagined wrinkles. Their heartbeat is slowing down and they take a deep breath, letting it out slowly. Their nails are still painted black and pink from their last mani/pedi night, chipped and peeling in places, and they consider cleaning them off, but ultimately decide hunting down polish remover was more trouble than it was worth. Spinning on the ball of their foot, Klaus scoops their coat back up and marches out of their room, heading back down the stairs, this time heading for the kitchen.

Once there, they find their mother, as flawlessly beautiful as the day she’d been built, busying herself at the sink. “Hey, Mom,” they greet, crossing the room to her side. She turns towards them, movements slightly stiff, and gives a strangely plastic smile.

“Klaus, dear, how lovely to see you,” she says, reaching out with one hand to cup their chin.

“You too, Mom,” they say, leaning into her touch. After a moment, they pull her into a hug, burying their face in her neck. “I missed you,” they sigh, squeezing tight.

“Oh, Klaus, sweetie, I’ve missed you, too,” she coos, wrapping her arms around them, softly rubbing the small of their back.

Klaus stays there as long as they dare, not exactly wanting one of the others to walk in on them. Mom turns to the fridge, pulling the door open. “Would you like a drink, honey?”

“Sure, Mom, thanks.”

She comes back with a glass of ice tea and asks, “So what brings you home, dear?” Klaus pauses, glass pressed to his lips, and looks her in the eyes. They lower the glass slowly.

“The funeral, Mom. Are you alright?” Something is wrong, but Klaus hasn’t been home in a very long time, she may have been declining while they were away. She was technically a machine, her hardware had to fail eventually.

“Oh, of course, the funeral,” she repeats absently, eyes sliding to stare into the middle distance over Klaus’s shoulder. She blinks and straightens up, smiling again. “Your brothers and sisters are gathering in the sitting room, why don’t you join them?”

“Uh, yeah. Okay. Thanks for the tea, Mom,” they say, smiling and heading in that direction. As they walk, they start to pat their pockets, searching for a cigarette and lighter. They light their prize as they step into the room, where they find all of their siblings sitting in a tense silence. “Well,” they say, breaking the ice and striding into the room. “When’s the last time we were all in the same place, huh? Course, it would take nothing less than dear old dad’s death.”


	12. 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Is Klaus trans?” Diego repeated. Vanya nodded, and he rolled his eyes. “Christ, Vanya, I don’t know! I mean, yeah, maybe, _probably_ , even, but until Klaus _says so_ , it’s none of my business.”
> 
> And then she went and made it everyone’s business.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Reminder to pay attention to the tags! This chapter and the next few will be from the other sibs' POV, and will all involve misgendering of some sort.  
> Also, please know that I don't mean to bash Vanya, but this Diego, who is already the angriest about the book, and I don't think he was angry on just his own behalf.  
> We will get to Vanya's POV and her reasoning in a couple of updates, but she is absolutely in the wrong and it will be addressed eventually, but not until late-game. (I have a Dave and Vanya scene that came to me yesterday, but that is not for a long time)
> 
> ALSOALSO
> 
> This chapter is probably definitely contradictory to some of chapter 1, specifically Diego's exposition about Vanya's book/Klaus's gender, because I have developed a better understanding of Diego in this situation. Please note the new tags. Also, this falls back a few chapters, deal with it, I needed more perspectives, and expands on Diego and Klaus's interaction in the foyer because Diego had more to say I guess idk
> 
> Reminder this is all 1st draft WIP garbage and things may change, this is just the first obvious instance and it's making me anxious so yaaaaaay

Diego is stomping his way downstairs, away from Luther’s obsessive searching for something that wasn’t  _ there _ , when he hears the front door open, followed shortly by Klaus’s voice echoing off the walls. Diego reaches the landing a moment later, boots making a heavy thud with each step. He pauses, staring down at his… sister. He’s relieved to see Klaus made it, and even looks fairly healthy,  but he also feels frustrated with Klaus for taking his demand not to call so seriously. But he knows that if Klaus  _ really _ needed him, Klaus would have called again, and Diego would have shown up. But clearly Klaus  _ didn’t _ need him, seeing as his phone had been silent for more than six months. In the end, the relief wins out, so he trots down the rest of the stairs, right up to Klaus, and makes a joke of worrying that Klaus might have been dead somewhere and he’d have no idea. The joke is in poor taste, honestly, but Klaus laughs anyway, assuring him, “No ditches here.”

Klaus takes a couple of steps away, and Diego simply nods, awkwardly trying to tell Klaus he’s glad to hear it, without admitting nearly so much.  After a second, Klaus glances around and asks, “Anybody else here?”

Diego nods, pointing up the stairs. “Luther got back this morning, he’s up in Dad’s room, looking for  _ clues _ ,” he says, rolling his eyes.

“Wasn’t it a heart attack?”

“Yeah,” Diego snorts. “He’s convinced it’s a conspiracy.”

Klaus chuckles, which sounds more genuine than the earlier laughter. “Of course he is.”

“Allison is around here, somewhere,” Diego adds, gesturing vaguely up the other stairs.

“And Vanya?”

Diego scowls at her name. If she dared to show up, Diego would… Well, he doesn’t know  _ what _ he’ll do, yet! She said so many things in that book, about all of them, and made money from it, she was a  _ traitor _ . Vanya wasn’t the only one Dad treated like shit, so where did she get off exposing all of  _ their _ trauma, too?

Except, it wasn’t their _full_ trauma, just the snippets she had observed over the years.  Without so much as a notice of forewarning, she published  _ her _ version of things, and so much of it was so flawed, yet so much so  _ accurate _ , that he couldn’t tell what she was making up and what she wasn’t. Except for one thing.

Vanya had made the decision to out Klaus as a trans man, and Diego knew exactly where she got the idea. It was… _maybe_ his fault, but he hadn’t known she was even writing a book, let alone pumping him for information. They had been talking about Klaus, Diego sharing the story of Klaus’s latest sleepover, where he had woken up to their sister topless with bandages wrapped tightly around the chest.

When she asked if Klaus was trans two stories later, his surprised hesitation was taken as an invitation to explain a concept that Diego was probably more familiar with than her. Eudora had been very open with him about who she was, and Diego had loved her all the more for it. Obviously, things wouldn’t work out in the end, but she still trusted him to know her that intimately.

So he cut her off halfway with a terse, “I know what fucking  _ trans _ is.”

She gave a soft, meek, “Oh,” before following up with, “So… is she?”

"Is Klaus trans?” Diego repeated. Vanya nodded, and he rolled his eyes. “Christ, Vanya, I don’t know! I mean, yeah, maybe, _probably_ , even, but until Klaus _says so_ , it’s none of my business.”

And then she went and made it  _ everyone’s _ business.

Diego has no idea why Klaus is asking about Vanya, unless it’s to avoid her. He growls out, “She won’t show up if she knows what’s good for her,” and pulls a knife free, flipping it agitatedly. Klaus steps back again and starts pointing up the stairs and making an excuse to get away from his knives. Diego lets Klaus go without protest, turning to make his own way to the kitchen.

He finds Mom there, sitting at the table, polishing something. “Hey, Ma,” he says, moving to her side and placing a hand on her shoulder. “You doin’ alright?”

“Of course, Diego,” she answers, looking up with a smile and tilt of her head. “And how are you, dear?”

“I’m fine,” he insists, dragging the nearest chair closer and taking a seat.

She hums, turning back to what she was doing. Looking down, Diego sees that it’s Dad’s monocle she’s cleaning. The one Luther is dead set on finding. If Luther catches her with it, what kind of conclusions might he jump to? He probably already suspects one of them, why not Mom? He watches her for a moment, wiping the cloth over the glass again and again and again. As far as Diego can tell, it’s spotless, but she continues wiping away at it.

“Mom?” Diego says, reaching one hand to touch hers, stilling their movements. “I think it’s clean.”

“Oh. I suppose you’re right,” she says, smiling absently. “I should return it to your father.”

Diego frowns, leaning forward. “Mom, dad’s dead, remember?”

She lifts her head to meet his eyes, and for a second she seems to stare  _ through _ him. “Oh, that’s right,” she says, eyes focusing again, “how silly of me.”

Diego watches her for a long moment, until she pulls her hands away, standing up. “Would you like a snack, sweetheart? There isn’t much left in the pantry, I’m afraid, with just Pogo and your father around, there wasn’t much use in keeping a full stock.”

“That’s okay, Ma,” Diego says, following her movements around. She starts digging through the cupboards anyway, and he’s worried something is wrong, but nothing can be wrong, because it’s Mom, and Mom is always fine, she’s indestructible, _had_ to be to survive their childhood. He sees that she left the monocle on the table, so he silently pockets it. Now Luther couldn’t possibly try to blame Mom. He’d take care of it for her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> next time is Allison!!


	13. 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Furthermore, he doesn’t _get_ Klaus. He never has; not when they were toddlers and Klaus loved bathtime, not when they were seven and Klaus had pestered him into letting her wear his uniform once, and not when she chose the name Klaus. So seeing her today, looking _so very_ different, in ways he couldn’t even quite pin down, and not understanding, was par for the course.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey, so I said Allison was next, but her POV here wasn't giving me anything to work with, so I've swapped her and Luther around! Vanya is next, and THEN Allison, if all goes well.  
> I feel pretty good about this one, and I have reached the halfway point for Nano, at over 25k words!  
> Also, thank you all so much for commenting! It always makes my day to see, and some of your questions helped me to figure things out, so please ask if you have any! I'm flying by the seat of my pants for most of this, and questions can help direct me!  
> Um, as always, pay attention to the tags and please enjoy!

Luther’s search of Dad’s bedroom has come up fruitless, so he’s heading to the office to look around. As he approaches, he can hear voices and sees the door is already open. Frowning, he walks a bit faster, wondering who else might be in there. It takes him a moment too long to recognize the voices as Allison and Klaus, laughing about whatever idiotic thing Klaus had said now. Klaus’s voice is lower than he remembers, but she was known to chain smoke, not to mention everything _else_ she put in her body that could be known to fuck up your throat. He gets a glance of his sisters as he reaches the room.

Allison looks amazing, as always, and he’s relieved to see her, worried she may have stayed home with her husband and daughter instead. Her hair is different, and Luther can’t help but think of all the ways _he’s_ changed since they last saw each other.

Luther turns his attention to Klaus, who looks _so_ different now, almost ten years later, her hair short on one side and braided on the other, chest strangely flat, more meat on her bones than he could remember seeing since they were kids, but that is her nose, her eyes, and, of course, her com _plete_ lack of respect.

Klaus is sitting in Dad’s chair, making fun of their father, on the day of his _funeral_ no less, legs hanging over the arm. “Get out of his chair,” he snaps at her, storming up to the desk. Klaus looks up, still grinning about her stupid jokes, and he watches how it slips as her eyes widen, taking him in. He swallows but holds his angry expression.

“Oh, wow, Luther,” she says, straightening but not standing up. “You’ve really… filled out.”

A hot flash of something he doesn’t quite understand flares up, from his stomach to his chest to the tips of his fingers, but Luther pushes it down, glaring at her. Whatever reason she had for being in Dad’s office, it wasn’t benign, and he wasn’t going to let her get away with it. Folding under his scowl, she stands and heads for the door. Luther snags her arm as she passes. “Drop it.”

“Ex- _squeeze_ me?” she chirps, head tipped like she didn’t understand, like he had no reason to distrust her.

“You heard me,” Luther presses.

“Oh,” Klaus huffs, leaning back just a little to look up into his eyes. “I’m sorry, is only Luther allowed to touch Daddy’s toys?” Luther bristles at the tone, at the implication that the things in here were playthings that Dad kept from them for shits and giggles. These are important items! Klaus can’t just take whatever she pleases to fund her drug habit. “He’s dead, anything you _think_ I took,” Luther knows she absolutely took something, she _always_ takes something, “isn’t doing _him_ any good.”

“Put it back, Klaus!” Luther demands, louder and angrier, and he may squeeze, just a little, and jerk his arm a bit, which is more than enough to cause her to stumble slightly.

She complains but empties her pockets, just dumping everything onto the floor, like it was worthless and didn’t matter to her. She makes an excuse about how it was just her inheritance and rushes out, leaving Luther and Allison alone.

He turns to her, giving a small smile. “Well, I guess Klaus is still Klaus,” he says awkwardly.

“Yeah,” she agrees softly, nodding. “Y’know, after all these years, it’s kinda comforting. It would be weird if he showed up and _didn’t_ try to steal anything not nailed down.”

Luther hums in agreement, but he notices her use of ‘he’ there.

Luther hasn’t seen Klaus in ten years, since Dad had all but said checking on her was a waste of time and he stopped showing up when she landed in the hospital. Furthermore, he doesn’t _get_ Klaus. He never has; not when they were toddlers and Klaus loved bathtime, not when they were seven and Klaus had pestered him into letting her wear his uniform once, and not when she chose the name Klaus. He certainly didn’t understand when Five disappeared and Klaus would laugh, because at least he isn’t dead, as if Klaus could _really_ know that. He didn’t understand when Klaus broke her jaw playing dress-up in Mom’s shoes at age twelve, or how she changed after that. He didn’t understand when she ran away a year later, or when she didn’t show up for Ben’s funeral, or when she overdosed again and again. So seeing her today, looking _so very_ different, in ways he couldn’t even quite pin down, and not understanding, was par for the course.

Reading Vanya’s book and not understanding was also not surprising. He had no idea _why_ Vanya had said any of that, but he figured she’d know better than him. He didn’t really understand _what_ , exactly, she was trying to say, either. Luther wasn’t the most well-read member of the Academy, and he had never really bothered to try understanding Klaus before, so he hadn’t put in the effort then, either. He was too preoccupied with the things she’d said about _him_ , and his _complexes_ and _neuroses_ or whatever, and how she had made Allison out to be so _manipulative_ , that he hardly had any presence of mind to pay attention to Klaus’s _pronouns_.

At the end of the year, he left for the moon, hasn’t seen anyone in over four years, and what did any of that matter in space? Brushing it aside for now, he asks if Allison has seen Diego so they can laugh at his fashion choices.


	14. 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She fought for him to be represented the way he presented himself. He wasn’t the little girl people remembered, and she had made sure that they all knew that. She had thought he would appreciate that.
> 
> Apparently not.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> IT'S VANYA  
> again, the tags, misgendering etc  
> for some reason, this chapter was really easy/quick to write, meanwhile Luther and my attempt at Allison yesterday seemed to take forever  
> also, Five is mentioned!!!

Vanya is in the library, after a rather aggressive brush-off from Diego and an apparently genuine welcome from Allison, she had wandered in, finding herself looking for her own book among the shelves.

Vanya knows some of her siblings didn’t like it, especially Diego, who was _furious_. She _does_ understand why they might be upset, the book was rather intrusive and revealing, but at the time she was just so desperate to feel something, _anything_ , other than the resentment and frustration that seemed to be drowning her. Writing it was cathartic and she dumped her emotions onto the page.

Finding her book, she pulls it out and reads the note she had written on the title page. It looked a little worn, so someone _must_ have read it, but whether that was her father or not was impossible to tell. Flipping through the pages distractedly, she hears the tapping of Pogo’s cane and looks up with a smile.

He smiles in return and greets her softly, opening his arms for a hug as she approaches. When they separate, he notes the book she’s holding. “Do you know, um… Did Dad ever read it?”

“I can’t say for sure,” Pogo starts, turning to avert his gaze slightly, “but not to my knowledge, Ms. Vanya.”

“Right. Of course,” she sighs, shaking her head and putting it back. Turning to Pogo again, she catches sight of the portrait of Five on the opposite wall. He looks just like he did the day he left, young and ambitious, with his whole life ahead of him. It’s been such a long time, but it still causes a sore ache in her chest to think of it. Vanya could still remember that day, a month and a half past ten years old, when Five stormed out of the house during lunch, never to return. “How long has it been, now?”

“Nineteen years, four months, and fourteen days,” Pogo sighs. He turns back to her. “Your father insisted I keep track.”

Vanya smiles a little, and shares the silly things she had done back then, leaving the lights on and fixing him sandwiches, just in case he showed up in the middle of the night. Pogo nods, recalling her midnight snacks as well.

“Your father always believed Five was still alive out there, somewhere. He never gave up hope.”

“Well, look where that got him,” she sighs, shrugging. Their father had died, despised and alone, with two dead children, and five that were all so traumatized they could hardly function as adults.

Pogo shuffles out of the library a few moments later, and she turns back to the bookshelves. Her book had been personal, _very_ personal, and she probably never should have published it, but she couldn’t change the past, and it was the only way she could have gotten any of them to listen to her, anyway. At least now she knew that they knew how she felt.

Except her editor, and the publisher, had wanted to… _tweak_ a few things. She could have fought a little harder, but it was mostly word choice, or phrasing. By the end, though, some of the things she had written had gone from a speculative tone to an accusatory one, and Diego’s anger makes some sense. She just isn’t entirely sure why he’s taken the position of President of the Vanya Hate Club, while Allison had literally just hugged her. Not that she’s seen Luther or Klaus yet, and maybe they were angry too, but Diego had gone out of his way to make his displeasure known for years, in between long bouts of pretending she didn’t even exist. She didn’t say anything worse about him than she did the others.

She isn’t sure what she had expected, though. An emotional phone call from her sister? Luther to leave the Academy? Klaus to quit the drugs? Of course none of that happened, nothing close to it. Instead, she got an even colder shoulder than ever before. She sighs again, wondering if she should go look for the others, when she hears footsteps approaching.

She looks up, blinking slowly at the sight of Klaus. He looks incredibly different from their younger days, of course, but he looks like he’s been eating, so that’s a plus as far as she’s concerned. The hair is interesting, and she vaguely wonders if he’d taught himself to braid or if he had someone to go back to after the funeral that had done it for him. He shifts his weight and rubs at his arm, a tell-tale sign that he needs a hit, and then she wonders if he got sober for today.

She glances down, just taking him all in, and is glad to see he really has put on a little weight. His top is sequined and rainbow, which is almost like a hat-on-a-hat, considering how flamboyantly queer he’s almost always been, especially paired with such tight-fitting leather pants and the flatness of his chest, but would it be Klaus if he weren’t the most over-the-top he could be? He looks _good_ , surprisingly so, and she opens her mouth to tell him, only for Klaus to bolt without even an excuse. He starts to give one, but just runs halfway through, like he can’t even be bothered to _lie_ to her.

She calls after him, but he doesn’t slow down or turn back, just rushes off and up the stairs once more.

Vanya doesn’t understand. Out of everyone, she thought Klaus would be most on her side about all this. It wasn’t like he had anything good to say about Dad or the Academy, and he was the biggest liar in the place, so why would he be upset with the places she had fudged the truth a little? Sure, she made a lot of presumptions about his time on the streets, but it wasn’t anything she hadn’t put together from the stories Diego and Allison shared about his random visits.

She even went to the trouble of insisting the publishers use the correct pronouns for him, it was the one thing she put her foot down about! They wanted to use the old ones, the ones she had used half the time in her rough draft, because she was still getting used to the new ones. But she fought for him to be represented the way he presented himself. He wasn’t the little girl people remembered, and she had made sure that they all knew that. She had thought he would appreciate that.

Apparently not.


	15. 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Klaus, put that out, you know Dad didn’t allow smoking in here.”
> 
> Klaus shrugs, plucking the cigarette from his lips again and blowing the smoke in Luther’s direction. “Daddy’s dead,” he snorts and lifts the glass to his lips, taking a deep swallow of what was probably either whiskey or scotch. Allison isn’t sure what his preferred poisons were these days, but he’s been stealing Dad’s alcohol since before Five disappeared, so it was a pretty safe bet that he’d raided the bar.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so Allison is still not working so well with me, idk man, but I wrote like 1300 words, so Imma post them anyway, even though it doesn't add much to the story. I couldn't find a spot to shoehorn in her thoughts on Klaus's gender bc she wasn't alone with them. I considered Luther asking about it at the end, but that doesn't feel right. idk, here it is, hopefully it's okay.  
> next is probably Ben, maybe this scene from his POV to see if that works better?  
> nothing much to warn here, this is pretty much the canon scene, with a few tweaks, but essentially doesn't add much, so sorry.

Allison shifts in her chair, glancing around at her siblings. Diego is sitting against the wall by a window, practically sulking in the corner, Vanya is on the couch, tucked into the corner, against the arm closest to Allison, and Luther is between them, staring down at his gloved hands and fidgeting. Clearly, they all no longer know how to be anything resembling a family anymore, and Allison isn’t exactly surprised, their family was never very cohesive, between Luther and Diego’s constant fighting and one-upmanship, Klaus’s aloof behavior and disappearing acts, and the loss of first Five and then Ben, not to mention all the bullshit their dad put them through in the first place.

The silence between them is tense, but then Klaus is padding into the room, barefoot and wearing new clothes, a cigarette in one hand and a glass of amber liquid in the other. “When’s the last time we were all in the same place, huh?” he asks, grinning at them and chuckling softly. “Course, it would take nothing less than dear old dad’s death.”

Everyone looks at him as he crosses the room. He pauses at the couch before sitting down, leaning onto the arm opposite Vanya, and takes a deep drag of his cigarette, bare feet shifting distractedly against the wood flooring. Luther frowns and sighs, standing up.

“Klaus, put that out, you know Dad didn’t allow smoking in here.”

Klaus shrugs, plucking the cigarette from his lips again and blowing the smoke in Luther’s direction. “Daddy’s dead,” he snorts and lifts the glass to his lips, taking a deep swallow of what was probably either whiskey or scotch. Allison isn’t sure what his preferred poisons were these days, but he’s been stealing Dad’s alcohol since before Five disappeared, so it was a pretty safe bet that he’d raided the bar.

Luther’s frown darkens, but before he can explode on Klaus, Allison notices just what their brother is wearing. “Is that my skirt?” she blurts out, leaning forward.

Klaus lowers his drink, meeting her eyes with a quirked eyebrow. “What? Oh! Yes, I found it in your closet,” he says, straightening up a bit to tug at the skirt. “It’s a bit dated, but it’s very breathing.”

“Look, we need to focus, alright?” Luther interrupts. “I figured we could have a service in the courtyard, at Dad’s favorite spot.”

“Dad had a favorite spot?” Allison asks, surprised. She never imagined him to be much of the favorites-having type.

“Yeah, under the old oak,” Luther says, looking at her. “We used to sit out there all the time.” He glances around at the others, noticing similar skepticism on their faces. “None of you ever did that?”

Diego snorts, shaking his head, but doesn’t say anything. Vanya stares down at her knees, hands clenched in her lap. Allison just shakes her head, shrugging. Klaus’s glass clinks as the ice inside taps against it and asks, “Will there be refreshments? Tea and scones, perhaps?” while making wide gestures with the hand holding the half-burned cigarette.

Luther turns back to Klaus, looking confused. “What? No. Listen, there are other things we need to discuss.”

“Like what?” Diego asks, getting up from his chair to move closer.

“Like the way he died.”

“And  _ here _ we go,” Diego sighs, putting one hand to his forehead.

“I don’t understand,” Vanya says, finally speaking up. “I thought it was a heart attack.”

“According to the coroner.”

“Well, wouldn’t they know?”

“Theoretically,” Luther says defensively. Vanya echoes him uncertainly. “Look, I’m just saying, something happened. The last time I talked to Dad, he sounded strange.”

Klaus, gargling his drink, exclaims something about how much of a surprise that  _ isn’t _ , and Allison asks, “Strange how?”

“He sounded on edge,” Luther explains. “Told me to be careful who I trusted.”

“Luther,” Diego cuts in. “He was a paranoid, bitter old man, who was losing what was left of his marbles.”

“No,” Luther denies. “No, he must have known something was going to happen.” Then he turns to Klaus. “I know you don’t like it, but I need you to talk to Dad.”

Klaus scoffs and leans forward to put out his cigarette on the glass top of the coffee table. “Oh, yeah, sure, I’ll just  _ ring him up _ ,” he says, rolling his eyes. “Yeah, hey, Dad, could you, like, stop playing tennis with Hitler to take a quick call?”

“Well why not? This is your whole thing!”

Klaus slumps against the couch again, taking another sip of his drink. “Well, for one, I am  _ not _ in the right frame of mind to--”

“What, you’re high?” Allison interrupts, irritated. Luther is asking him to do  _ one _ thing, to clear this up so he and Diego can stop squabbling like children, and Klaus can’t be bothered to even try.

“I just don’t want to  _ see _ the old bastard!” Klaus snaps back, crossing his arms and spilling his drink on his coat. “Goddamnit,” he mutters to himself, sitting up to wipe it dry.

“Sober up, Klaus, this is important,” Luther demands before turning his attention to the others again. “There’s also the issue of the missing monocle--”

“Who fucking  _ cares _ about a stupid monocle?” Diego spits.

“Exactly! It’s worthless, so whoever took it, it was personal. Someone close to him, with a grudge.”

Klaus looks up from his coat, frowning. “Where are you going with this?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Diego huffs. “He thinks one of  _ us _ killed him.”

Diego’s declaration has Vanya looking hurt and Klaus seems surprised but not scandalized (it would be pretty hard to actually scandalize him, anyway). Diego is the first to stalk out of the room, giving Luther a sarcastic congratulations on a job well led. Luther is trying to backpedal, insisting that wasn’t what he meant, but Vanya makes her way out, too, and Klaus isn’t far behind, shaking his head.

“I’m not finished!” Luther calls after them, but only Klaus responds.

“Be right back, I’m just gonna go murder  _ Mom _ !” Sighing, Luther turns back to Allison, the only one left in the room.

“Well that went well,” he sighs.

Allison shrugs, standing up. “I know you didn’t  _ really _ mean it, but Diego’s got a point. What else could you be trying to say?”

“I… I don’t know, Allison,” Luther admits. “I don’t know  _ who _ did it, but someone did, and we can’t just ignore the fact that almost all of us have both motive and opportunity.”

Allison sighs, putting one hand on his arm. She can’t help but notice how much bigger he is than the last time they’d seen each other, and she wonders what happened, but has no idea how she would even ask.  “Luther. Think about this. Which of us could have possibly done this? You were on the _moon_ and I was across the country. Vanya doesn’t have a malicious bone in her body and hasn’t been home since she left. Dad would have been a bloody mess if Diego had killed him. And if Klaus was even in town at the time, he could never pull this off if he  _ tried _ . He’s always been better at robbing the place than anything else.”

Luther lets his breath out slowly and lifts his free hand to rub the side of his face. “I just… There’s no way he just  _ died _ , Allie. Someone killed him, and I don’t know who else could do it. Who could get in the house, in his  _ room _ , without being detected?”

“Well, it certainly wasn’t any of us. Let’s just focus on getting through the funeral, alright? We can deal with potential murder schemes later, alright?” Then she pats his arm and makes her way out as well.


	16. 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Are you going to actually try to conjure him?” Klaus hasn’t tried yet, his hands haven’t even had a flicker of blue in them.
> 
> “Not for free,” he scoffs, lifting his head.
> 
> “Even to get answers?”
> 
> “Who cares!” Klaus exclaims, turning to face Ben. “Diego’s right, he was a miserable, _horrible_ old man, and the only reason I’d want to know who killed him, is so I could shake their _fucking_ hand!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey guys! this chapter was much better!!  
> I think I was struggling bc I was a) retelling canon bits and b) retelling stuff Klaus had already covered and also c) the others aren't as easy to write as Klaus, idk  
> today we have Ben's POV of... everything since getting to the house, but super-fast-tracked and summarized so we could get to some NEW stuff  
> and guess who finally showed uuu~uuup???

Watching Klaus and Diego awkwardly joke about whether or not Klaus had ended up dead in a ditch over the past six months was painful and frustrating. Ben knows Diego isn’t trying to be a dick, he’s just so  _ talented _ at it sometimes.  Not that Klaus didn’t sometimes deserve it, he could be a dick, too, but it was kinda tacky to have something like that be the first thing you say in a  year.

Then Klaus decides to go burglarize Dad’s office without even checking if he was in the will, and Ben doesn’t feel quite so bad for him anymore. This was just asking to get accused, _and caught,_ doing something wrong. If he would just open up for once and _tell them_ that he’s sober, Ben thinks Klaus would be surprised by the support he would get. Allison and Diego didn’t send him to rehab or let him crash that many times just for fun, they wanted him to get better, but eventually they’d given up on him.

Watching Klaus lie to Allison was also painful, and there’s no way she believed him for even one second. But she lets him hug her and laughs, and Ben rolls his eyes. Klaus starts joking, and even Ben has to snicker once or twice, but Luther’s entrance dampens the atmosphere instantly. He can’t believe how  _ big _ Luther’s gotten, and he doesn’t understand  _ how _ he got so big, but he definitely catches the strained look in his eyes when Klaus comments on it.

Ben sighs, when Luther makes Klaus empty his pockets. “I told you it was a bad idea,” he says, but Klaus ignores him, shouting about their inheritance and then storming out. Ben follows, shaking his head. They end up in Klaus’s old room, hiding what he’d managed to smuggle out.

When they run into Vanya, Ben is expecting something to happen. He isn’t sure  _ what _ , exactly, but after the way she had written about Klaus, let alone Ben and Five and the others, it was clear Klaus was angry and hurt. He didn’t really talk about it much, but when it came up, Ben could always see the way he bristled. Whenever he’d ask, Klaus would wave him off, pretending it didn’t bother him, but he knows it did, and he’s anticipating some sort of confrontation, a telling off or a sarcastic joke about not outing people, maybe even a shouting match.

Instead, Klaus goes stock still almost as soon as he sees her and takes off in the other direction before she can speak. Ben stays for a moment, watching him run and then turning to Vanya, who looks confused and hurt, and that angers Ben. Where does she get off being hurt?  _ She’s _ the one that dumped all this bullshit out there,  _ she’s _ the one that hurt their siblings. Sure, they weren’t the best to her, either, but this was some next level shit and Vanya would be lucky if Luther and Allison weren’t as angry as the rest of them.

He follows Klaus upstairs and finds him in Allison’s closet, rooting around for something else to wear, apparently. He looks calm and put together, but Ben can see the cracks, after nearly twelve years attached at the ghostly hip, and he speaks cautiously. “Klaus?” His sibling doesn’t reply, draping the skirt he emerged with over his shoulders, and heads back to his own room. Ben averts his gaze politely as Klaus strips, not that Klaus has ever been particularly modest.

“Is there a  _ reason _ you’ve raided Allison’s closet?” he asks hesitantly, once the skirt has settled around his legs. Klaus’s answer is dismissive and deflective as he stares into the mirror, before asking for Ben’s opinion on his top. Ben just blinks, unsure if he really wants an answer or if he’s just asking to distract.

He watches as Klaus continues fixing his outfit and then follows him down to the kitchen, where Mom greets him warmly. She gets him a drink, and Ben takes a spot standing beside her, wanting to be close. He glances at Klaus, opening his mouth to ask if they can at least tell  _ Mom _ he’s here, but she beats him to the punch. “What brings you home, dear?”

Klaus freezes and his eyes shoot back up to Mom from his drink before sliding to meet Ben’s for just a second. “The funeral, Mom,” he says, frowning slightly. “Are you alright?” Mom gets a strange look in her eyes for a moment, like she isn’t seeing what’s in front of her, murmuring to herself, and then focuses again, sending Klaus to find the others in the living room.

Klaus makes an entrance, cigarette in one hand, tea in the other, and asks, “When’s the last time we were all in the same place, huh?” Everyone turns to look at him, and Klaus grins. “Course, it would take nothing less than dear old dad’s death.” He approaches the couch and pauses for a second, glancing at Vanya before sitting down. Ben doesn’t miss the way he stays pressed against the arm, or the subtle tip of his head inviting Ben to sit between them.

That’s also unusual, and Ben wouldn’t be much of a barrier, considering if either of them moved they’d just slide right through him, but he sits anyway, because Klaus was obviously upset to be in the same room as her, let alone on the same couch.

Luther tells Klaus to put the cigarette out, and in reply he blows a couple of smoke rings in Luther’s direction and snorts, “Daddy’s dead.” Luther looks pissed, but Allison interrupts, recognizing her skirt. After Klaus confirms that it is, indeed, hers, Luther tries to bring the meeting to order. A simple ceremony out by the oak, Dad’s, apparent, favorite spot, and he’s obviously bewildered that none of the others had ever been to it with him.

Klaus asks about refreshments, and Luther doesn’t appreciate that, either, having more pressing matters to discuss. Like the way he died.  When he turns to Klaus, asking him to talk to Dad, Klaus rolls his eyes and shakes his head. “Yeah, sure, I’ll just  _ ring him up _ .” Luther demands to know why not, and Klaus starts to explain, not that Ben is sure how much was going to be honest and how much would be snark, but Allison doesn’t give him a chance.

“What, you’re high?”

“I just don’t want to  _ see _ the old bastard!” Klaus snaps, spilling his drink on himself with a swear. Then Luther starts in about the monocle, which ends up with Diego spelling out  for them that Luther suspects it was one of them. The room starts to empty, Diego hurrying off first, followed by Vanya, and then Klaus.

Ben follows him to the dining room, where the urn is waiting for that evening service. Klaus grabs a chair and sits at the counter, staring at the urn with his chin resting on the ceramic tiles. He doesn’t say anything for a bit, and Ben wanders around a bit, looking at the shelves, but everything looks so much like it did when they were kids. Eventually, Klaus sighs and lets out a groan, sitting up.

“You know, if  _ I _ was murdered, and one of my… adopted… children could speak to the dead, I think I’d give a shot at, y’know,  _ manifesting?” _ he whines, not at Ben, but maybe not entirely at Dad, either. “I mean, I know the meds keep numbers down, but if he’s angry enough about being murdered, you’d think he’d  _ show up! _ Tell us all who done it, move on into that  _ eternal peace, _ maybe!” He’s silent for a moment, sulking at the urn. Then he sighs and drops his forehead to the counter.

“Not that I  _ need _ to see him,” Klaus mutters after a while. “Or  _ want _ to. I’ve been fucking  _ great _ .”

They stay quiet for another moment, before Ben speaks. “Are you going to actually try to conjure him?” Klaus hasn’t tried yet, his hands haven’t even had a flicker of blue in them.

“Not for free,” he scoffs, lifting his head.

“Even to get answers?”

“Who cares!” Klaus exclaims, turning to face Ben. “Diego’s right, he was a miserable,  _ horrible _ old man, and the only reason I’d want to know who killed him, is so I could shake their  _ fucking _ hand!”

Ben frowns, arms crossed, but doesn’t speak.

“Oh, don’t start that,” Klaus huffs. “Why do you even care? He treated us all like shit! Except maybe Luther sometimes, but only because  _ he _ was a kiss-ass. If he didn’t make us go on missions, if he hadn’t raised us to be  _ soldiers _ , you’d probably still be alive!”

“Well I’m not!” Ben retorts. “And refusing to talk to him won’t undo that! You are looking at a _great_ opportunity to tell them you’re sober, and you’re refusing to even try to take it!”

“I don’t owe them that!” Klaus argues.  Klaus sighs, scrubbing his face with his hands. “I need some fresh air,” he mumbles, standing up and heading for the door.

“Klaus,” Ben calls after him.

“I’m just gonna check in with Dave, I’ll be back in twenty minutes!” Then he’s out the door and Ben takes his seat, staring at the urn instead.

“Couldn’t make it easy on us, huh?” he asks the ashes.

After a few minutes, and Ben’s not sure if it’s been two or twenty, he tends to lose track when he’s on his own, music starts to blare through the house from the bedrooms. His head starts to bob as the familiar sound of Tiffany fills the air, and before long he’s on his feet, shuffling along to the beat.

As the bop is nearing the end, Ben feels a familiar sensation as Klaus tugs on their connection, and next thing he knows, he’s outside on the sidewalk, standing over Klaus, who’s on his knees,  hands on someone who seems to have collapsed in the street. “Klaus? What--”

Klaus whips around to look at him, eyes wide and wild, loose strands of hair sticking to his face. “It’s Five,” he gasps before turning back to the kid.

“It--  _ what?” _ Ben pops to the other side, dropping down beside the prone figure, and  _ holy shit it is Five. _ “What the hell? Wh-what happened? How--?”

“He just, just, popped out of  _ nowhere! _ ” Klaus exclaims, checking his pulse. Ben stares for a moment, taking in the blood gathered just under Five’s nose, and, Jesus, he looks just like he did the last time they saw him, still wearing his uniform, the same tidy haircut, but his skin is pale and clammy and--

“We need to get him inside,” Ben breathes, reaching to grab his shoulder, only for his hands to fall through. “Klaus, Klaus, make me corporeal,” he insists. “Make me corporeal  _ right now!” _ He needs to touch Five, needs to make sure this is real, not some hallucination or nightmare (not that Ben dreams anymore, he can’t even sleep), and why is Klaus taking  _ so long?! _

“O-okay, he’s breathing, his pulse is okay,” Klaus mutters, and then his hands are glowing and Ben can lay his own on their now-little brother. Together, they lift him up, leaning him against Klaus’s side, and drag him back to the house. Klaus must have been walking the block while he talked to Dave, it took them too long to get home, and as they got through the door, Klaus’s hold on Ben faded. Tiffany is still playing, a new song now, and Vanya is there in the entryway, dancing at the bottom of the stairs when they stumble inside.

As Ben loses his grasp, Five slumps further to the side, Klaus scrambling to keep him upright, and Vanya rushes over, right into Ben, and takes up his spot. “What-- How--”

“Not  _ now _ , Van, let’s get him laid down,” Klaus spits through his teeth, and together they manage to get him to the door into the sitting room. Ben watches as Vanya pulls it open, anxious and nervous and if he still had tear ducts, he’d probably be crying by now because  _ holy fuck, Five is home. _

They find Diego having his own little dance party, and he whips around angrily, only to stop short when he sees them. “Is that--?”

“Yes,” Klaus heaves, dragging Five toward the couch. “Move the table!”

Diego shoves it out of the way and the other two deposit the smallest Hargreeves on the cushions. The four of them just stare down at Five for a long, silent moment, Tiffany  _ still _ ringing through the house.

“What the fuck happened?” Diego demands, turning to Klaus and Vanya. She looks between them, uncertain, and then turns her attention to Klaus.

“I don’t know,” he says, tossing his hands in the air.

“What do you mean you _don’t know?”_ Diego bites, advancing on Klaus, voice raising.

“I mean I don’t  _ know _ ,” Klaus snarls. “I went outside to make a phone call, and he just  _ appeared _ in front of me!”

Vanya is looking between them again, hands fluttering uselessly, and she opens her mouth, perhaps to try and calm them down, but Diego just steamrolls over her.

“How? Where the fuck did he come from?”

“I have no  _ fucking _ idea! He passed out before he could  _ say _ anything, so how bout you get off my  _ dick _ , asshole!”

“Guys,” Vanya tries, but they don’t even notice. Ben moves to the couch, checking on Five again, and ignores the fight that is getting louder but, thankfully, not violent yet. Five is breathing steadily, and his nose had already stopped bleeding, but wherever he had been, whatever he had done, he’d obviously exhausted himself.

A new sound joins, then, and Ben looks up to see Pogo has limped into the room, striking his cane once more. “Children, what is the meaning of all this shouting?”

Diego and Klaus immediately start yelling over each other, and Pogo bangs the cane again with a sharp, “Boys!” That finally shuts them up, and they both take a step back from each other, exposing Five on the couch. “Oh my,” Pogo says, moving closer. He inspects Five for a moment, then turns back to the others. “What happened?”

Vanya and Diego both pointedly turn to Klaus. He sighs and scrubs one hand through the short curls on the side of his head. “Alright, so I was just making a call outside, since this place is so frickin’ ancient you can’t even get service in here--”

“Cut to the chase, Klaus,” Diego growls. Klaus narrows his eyes, but continues.

“I was walking around the block when he just blinked in, like he always did, just out of  _ nowhere! _ I just about dropped my phone, and then he looked at me, nose bleeding, and passed out, so I dragged his little ass home, and here we are!”

“I’m getting Mom,” Diego says, disappearing out the door.

“Should we get Allison and Luther?” Vanya asks. Pogo nods, and she hurries off to find them, leaving Klaus with Pogo, Ben, and the unconscious Five.

“I can’t believe he’s home,” Ben whispers, incorporeal hand trying to brush Five’s bangs from his eyes.


	17. 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I time traveled, didn’t I?” he breathes, shifting his gaze to his other siblings as the memories finally filtered in. “I, I ran out at lunch, and I just, I wanted to _try,_ I didn’t think it would _work,_ I--” He pauses and laughs a little. “I told him I could do it! I knew I could do it!” he exclaims, excitement filling his chest. “Where’s Dad? I can’t wait to--”
> 
> “He’s dead,” Luther cuts in, and Five stops short, looking up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> oh? what's this? a DOUBLE POST??  
> it sure is, bitches, ENJOY  
> Five POV, babes, and be ready, bc there's a lot to unpack for this boy!  
> I don't think I need to add any new tags, but if anyone thinks I missed something, please let me know!  
> also, someone asked about a betting pool for which sibling will meet Gracie first, and I already know the answer, but feel free to place bets!!

Five wakes slowly, first noting the soft and angry buzz of an argument not too far away, but he can’t catch the words, nor does he recognize the voices. Then, he feels the familiar touch of his mother’s hand on his own, just patting it gently, and he realizes he’s laying with his head in her lap, her other hand combing through his hair. Her hands still as he stirs, blinking slowly up at her. “Mom…” He’s not sure why he’s sleeping in her lap, doesn’t remember curling up with her like this. He’s also quite tired and sore, like he’s been training for hours, but he doesn’t recall anything like that, either. What had he been doing today?

“Good morning, dear,” she says, smiling down at him. “I’m so glad to see you’re awake.” The background of bees fighting quiets, and Five blinks up at Mom.

“What… happened?”

“We aren’t entirely sure, yet, dear,” she says, and something is off about her smile, her tone too cheery for her words, but his head hurts and he can’t really figure out what’s wrong.

“Mom, what…?”

“Not to worry, Five,” she says, “we’ll have it figured out soon enough.”

“Mom,” someone else says, and Five looks over to find strange adults he doesn’t recognize. One is a man with a _lot_ of knives strapped across his chest, which makes Five nervous. Mom doesn’t seem to be, but maybe that’s got to do with whatever’s wrong. Beside the man is someone else, and Five has no words to describe them, and that’s probably Dad’s fault, keeping them overly sheltered and isolated from the real world. Klaus would probably know what to call them, she was always testing and stretching the boundaries of what Dad allowed, stealing Ben’s uniform sometimes, sneaking out of the house to see the way people _really_ lived.

Glancing around, Five doesn’t see any of his siblings, but there’s… “Pogo?” he murmurs, trying to sit up. Mom helps him as the old chimp moves closer, looking so much older than Five remembers. What is going on? What had he been doing today? This is so frustrating, Five _hates_ being confused, not understanding what he’s looking at, and a memory gap like this feels absolutely awful.

The strangers approach as well, and Five shrinks back a bit from the man with the knives. He’s so tired, there’s no way he can get himself to safety if he needs to, let alone Mom or Pogo. “What, what’s going on?” he asks.

The other person, tall and lanky, wearing a pretty skirt and a tight tank top, kneels by the couch, bringing them eye-to-eye.

“Hey, Fivey,” they say, giving a little smile. “It’s okay. What’s the last thing you remember?”

Five looks to Pogo and then Mom, unsure if these people are dangerous or not, but they don’t seem concerned, so Five figures they must be okay. Maybe they’re new tutors? He opens his mouth, searching for the words to explain that he isn’t sure _what_ he remembers, when the door flies open and three more strangers, another man and two women, come bustling in.

“Five!” one of them, a tall black woman with bleached hair, exclaims. “It’s really you!”

Five swallows, looking up at Mom again. She gives him that smile again, the strange, not-quite-right one, and says, “It’s alright, Five. These are your brothers and sisters, you can trust them.”

“My…” Five blinks, turning to look again, and he can kind of see it. The man with knives must be Diego, and Allison is the one barely restraining herself from grabbing him. Vanya was always so small, and Luther so tall, and taking a closer look, he can recognize Klaus’s nose and eyes in the face of the closest one. He glances around again, noting the absence of anyone that could possibly be Ben.

Then, in typical Luther fashion, the _very_ large man is asking too many questions all at once.

“Hey, knock it off,” Klaus scolds, standing up. “You’re gonna overwhelm him!”

“Well we need some answers!” Luther retorts. “He’s been gone for a _long_ time.”

“Yeah, no shit,” Diego scoffs. “Why don’t you give him a second to orient himself?”

Vanya comes closer and sits on the couch beside him. “Hey, Five. We’ve missed you. Think you can fill us in on where you went?”

Five licks his lips and is surprised to taste blood. Reaching up, he finds there’s some dried under his nose. He must have overworked his powers, but _how?_ What had he…?

Blinking, Five looks up at her. “I… I time traveled, didn’t I?” he breathes, shifting his gaze to his other siblings as the memories finally filtered in. “I, I ran out at lunch, and I just, I wanted to _try_ , I didn’t think it would _work,_ I--” He pauses and laughs a little. “I told him I could do it! I knew I could do it!” he exclaims, excitement filling his chest. He’d really managed to time travel! He couldn’t _wait_ to rub it in the old man’s face. “Where’s Dad? I can’t wait to--”

“He’s dead,” Luther cuts in, and Five stops short, looking up.

“Wh-what?”

“Luther, what the hell,” Klaus complains. “Way to break it to him gently.”

Five isn’t sure how he feels about this information. He had never really _liked_ their father, but he still _was_ their father, even if it was obvious he didn’t really like them, either. Putting that thought aside, Five instead asks, “What year is it?”

His siblings exchange glances, like they’re debating if they should even tell him, which is just condescending and rude. Allison is the one to turn to him and say, “Twenty-nineteen. It’s been almost twenty years, Five.” And that is a _long_ time, his siblings are all triple his age, now, and Dad is dead.

“And… When did Dad die?” he asks. They share another look, and Five frowns, crossing his arms. “Stop debating whether to answer my questions, just _do it,”_ he growls, glaring at them. Diego snorts, and Five glares harder.

“Sorry, kiddo,” Klaus sighs. “You’ve got perfect timing, really, the funeral is in, like, an hour.”

“Oh.” It was very recent, then. Five wonders if he’ll have a chance to see his body before he’s buried. Wonders if he even wants to. “What happened?”

“Heart failure,” Diego replies. Vanya reaches to place her hand on his knee, and he lets her, even though her touch is different than he remembers. It’s still soft and warm, though.

“No it wasn’t,” Luther says.

Five looks up, confused. “What do you mean?”

“It _was_ heart failure,” Diego reiterates, crossing his arms in a way that Five finds very familiar, which is comforting in an odd way. “Luther is just obsessed with making it out to be more than it is.”

“No, I’m not, it doesn’t make sense!”

The two of them start to argue, but Allison comes to the couch, pulling Five into a hug. “We’ve missed you _so_ much,” she sighs into his ear, and Five reaches up to pat her back a couple of times. He watches Luther and Diego shouting over her shoulder, and Klaus is trying to break them up, or remove them from the room at least, while Vanya gives his knee a gentle squeeze. “I’m sure this must be a lot to take in. I’m just so glad to see you again.”

Five hums non-committedly, glancing around once more. “So… Where’s Ben? Shouldn’t he be here, too?”

Five’s brothers stop their arguing, turning towards those piled on the couch, and Klaus groans, rubbing her face. Five looks from them to Vanya and then leans back, making Allison straighten up. None of them look like they want to answer him, once again, and Five feels something hot and painful knotting in his chest. “Where’s Ben?” he repeats, and his voice absolutely does _not_ tremble.

Vanya wraps her arms around him, pulling Five into her lap, and Allison sits beside her, putting her arms around the both of them. He looks up at Luther and Diego, who have both looked away. _“Where’s Ben?”_ he demands, and his vision is getting blurry, which is weird, that shouldn’t be happening, but his eyes itch, so maybe it’s just a side effect of the time travel.

“Ben’s dead, dear,” Mom finally says, in that awful, wrong, too happy for the subject voice, and it _hurts_ to hear her say those words like that. Five feels like he can hardly breathe, his sisters are too close, holding him too tight, and he can feel them shaking, wetness on his shoulder where Vanya has tucked her face.

He tries to blink out of their hold, but he’s already exhausted his power and nothing happens. He looks to his brothers again, and they still aren’t looking, and Klaus is pacing near the doorway, rubbing the back of her neck. “W-when? What happened?” Five whispers, voice cracking, and he hates that, he’s stronger than that.

Diego sighs and comes closer, sitting on the coffee table in front of them, and starts to explain.

“We were seventeen. Dad started sending us on real missions, fighting all sorts of bad guys, a couple years after you left. But that day, things just… got out of hand. There wasn’t anything we could do, not that _Dad_ saw it that way. The eulogy he gave was basically telling us to shape up and do better before someone _else_ died.”

Five swallows, squeezing his eyes shut. They really do itch, but with the girls clinging to him, he can’t reach up to rub them. His breath hitches, and he sucks in another through his nose, which ends up sounding like a pathetic sniffle, and then his face is wet and he can’t deny it anymore. He’s crying.

He had disappeared, his siblings had grown up without him, and one of them had _died._ What if Five could have done something? What if he could have saved Ben? He’s so tired right now, but as soon as he gets some rest, he’ll start working on going back, he can fix this, he _has_ to fix this, right? There has to be a way to go back, doesn’t there?

He can hear Luther talking, now, and Mom’s standing up, saying something about making _cookies,_ and Five takes in another breath, deep and heavy, and then a sob escapes, shaking his whole body.

“Alright, alright!” Klaus exclaims from her position across the room. “Ben has something to say.”

Five freezes, head snapping up and eyes opening wide, all tears coming to a halt. Of course, of course Klaus could talk to Ben, could pass on messages from him, that’s what her power _was._ He looks to her, eager and on edge to know what Ben wants to tell them. But their siblings react very differently.

Vanya starts crying even harder, and Allison doesn’t look up, going very still. Diego and Luther both turn to Klaus, shoulders tense and scowling.

“Seriously, Klaus?” Luther bites. “You’re gonna pull this shit _now?”_

“Ghost rights are human rights!” Klaus snaps back, and Five has no idea what that means, and it doesn’t look like Luther does either, but Diego is pissed and starts yelling again.

“Klaus, we don’t need to confuse the kid anymore than he already is!”

Five takes offense to that and complains, “I’m not a kid! And, and I’m not _confused!”_ And maybe that’s a stretch of the truth, but he isn’t confused by _Klaus._ He is much more confused by their siblings' reactions. Why wouldn’t they want to hear from Ben?

Klaus stays where she is, seeing as Five has all four of their siblings practically on top of him, and they seem to want to keep her from sharing whatever it is Ben has to say. She leans against the doorframe, arms crossed over her middle. She takes a deep breath and then looks straight at Five, ignoring the others to meet his eyes.

“Ben says he’s missed you,” she starts. “He’s missed you _so much,_ Five, we all have. He’s…” Klaus pauses, but doesn’t break eye contact. “He’s relieved you’re here, that you’re safe and haven’t been lost all this time. He says he loves you.” Klaus blinks and finally tears her eyes from Five to look at the others. “He says he loves and misses all of you.” She relaxes a little, mouth curving into a tiny smirk. “Even if you’re total tools, sometimes.”

“Klaus, knock it off,” Luther growls.

Klaus whines, rubbing her shoulder, and glares at an empty space to her left. “Alright, geez, he didn’t call you tools,” she says, rolling her eyes.

“Klaus, fuck off,” Diego snarls. “Nobody wants to listen to this!”

Five watches as Klaus sighs, glancing at the empty space again, and shrugs. Then she shuffles out of the room, as their brothers clearly don’t want her here anymore. Five looks around at them all, confused.

“Why don’t you guys believe her? Isn’t that what Klaus’s power _is?”_ he asks, bewildered.

“Five, Klaus is… not the person you remember anymore,” Diego says.

Luther snorts. “Yeah, that’s putting it lightly. She’s a junkie and a liar, Five, and an attention whore on top of that.”

“God, Luther, you could at least have a _little_ tact,” Vanya sniffs, straightening up and letting go of Five. “Klaus has been through a lot, we all have, of course we’re different, but… Klaus, especially, got into some bad things.”

“And his powers don’t work when he’s high, which is _always,”_ Allison sighs.

At this point, if Diego were to accuse someone of confusing him again, Five would have to agree. He is _very_ confused now. Clearly his siblings are different, they’re all much older than him, now. He’s not totally sure what, exactly, a junkie _is,_ and he is certainly not about to ask, but he does know that being high is kind of like getting drunk, which Klaus used to do.

He remembers once, last summer, or, Five supposes, it was many summers ago, now, the two of them stole a bottle of something that they shared on the roof. Klaus took long gulps, like the clear liquid was nothing more than water, but it burned Five’s throat like fire and gasoline. It did make him feel pretty good after a few drinks, though, and they had a great night stargazing and making up new constellations in the sky above them. Five remembers having trouble trying to use his powers to get them back down, and Klaus had just laughed and taught him how to shimmy down the drain pipe. The morning after, Five’s head had felt swollen and tender, but Klaus was chipper as ever.

By the time Five has managed to process his thoughts, the others have moved the conversation on to Dad’s funeral, which needs to get started if they want to wrap things up before dark. So, the siblings start gathering things up and Vanya goes to find Klaus, since none of the others even seem to want to _look_ at her.

Five’s chest aches, and he wishes he understood why.


	18. 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Hey, doll, what’s up? Everything alright?” he asks, and it’s like a honeyed salve on Klaus’s soul.
> 
> “Yeah,” Klaus sighs, smiling into the phone. “Just catching up with everyone and, well, just the same old shit as always, y’know?” Dave hums, and Klaus can hear one of Gracie’s smart-baby cassettes (a relic from the 90s) playing in the background. “Are you two having fun without us?”
> 
> “Oh, you know it,” Dave teases. Klaus smiles, tipping his head to cradle the phone to their shoulder, pulling their jacket a little tighter. Allison’s skirt had done wonders for their dysphoria, but it was useless against the chilly March wind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> alright, back to Klaus!  
> adding a new tag, so keep an eye on it, but it's nothing too major, just figured I'd add to cover my bases  
> we've backed up a bit again, bc I wanted the Klave phone call, it's been too long since Dave and Grace Kelly made an appearance
> 
> also: in chapter, like, 11 or something, I referred to Dave's family and their expectations of him, using the phrase "good Christian boy"; I had someone comment that Dave is canonically Jewish, and I explained that I wasn't aware that was actually canon, though with a name like Katz, it seems pretty obvious, huh? anyway! I am including that he's Jewish, as was my intention from the start, but that he comes from a mixed family, raised primarily by his widowed Christian mom's side, with the homophobic uncle and probably grandparents as well, but feeling more in place during his visits with his Dad's side, mostly during the High Holidays. I am not Jewish, so I don't plan to go into too much detail there, bc I don't know what I'm talking about. Abba, which is how Klaus refers to Dave with Gracie, is Hebrew for dad/father, and they use Baba for Klaus, which sounds similar and comes off more gender-neutral than the traditional Mama/Papa in English. sorry for the infodump, just wanna clarify that before we start this chapter, in case anyone was confused.

Klaus sits with the ashes, Ben wandering around the room, but letting Klaus mull over their thoughts, for a while. Klaus sighs, staring at the urn. They didn’t _need_ to see Dad to know he was dead, and Klaus didn’t particularly care if he was murdered or not. And if one of their siblings had carried out the deed? All the more power to them, the old man deserved it.

But there is a little something in their chest, sinking slowly into their stomach, burning bitter and sharp. If he’d really been murdered, why hadn’t he shown himself? He could have hung around and come to Klaus once they arrived and actually _helped_ for once. But it would be too much to expect their father, notorious for throwing them into the deep end without a life preserver, to assist his children.

In the end, Klaus can’t sit here any more and goes to call Dave. Dave could calm them down, get them focused back on the tasks at hand. Klaus just needed a few minutes.

They start around the block, just a quick walk, and dial Dave’s number, taking a deep breath, with just a hint of a shake in their lungs. Dave answers right away, and just the sound of his voice, warm and soft and happy to hear from them, helps relax Klaus’s shoulders.

“Hey, doll, what’s up? Everything alright?” he asks, and it’s like a honey’d salve on Klaus’s soul.

“Yeah,” Klaus sighs, smiling into the phone. “Just catching up with everyone and, well, just the same old shit as always, y’know?” Dave hums, and Klaus can hear one of Gracie’s smart-baby cassettes (a relic from the 90s) playing in the background. “Are you two having fun without us?”

“Oh, you know it,” Dave teases. Klaus smiles, tipping his head to cradle the phone to their shoulder, pulling their jacket a little tighter. Allison’s skirt had done wonders for their dysphoria, but it was useless against the chilly March wind.

“That’s good,” they say softly. “She deserves some time just with Abba.”

Dave hums, and the background sounds grow quieter. “You really doing okay? I know it must’ve been tough, seeing them all.”

Klaus sighs and rubs their face. “I was, until I ran into Vanya,” they admit. “I just… I dunno, Dave, I froze up and…” They snort, glancing down at their clothes. “I just _ran_ , Dave, what the fuck is wrong with me? It’s just _Vanya_ for Christ’s sake.”

“Klaus,” Dave sighs, and Klaus wishes he was here, that they could see his face and let him wrap them up in a hug. “She hurt you. Of course you don’t want to be around her.”

“They’ve _all_ hurt me, Dave,” Klaus argues. “And she hurt all of _them_ , too, we’ve all hurt each other, but I’m the only one having trouble being in the same room.”

“What she said about you was incredibly personal, Klaus, you can’t blame yourself for protecting yourself.”

Klaus sighs, rubbing their arms in an attempt to warm up a bit more, stomping their feet as well, and then turns the corner. “Can I talk to Grace?” they ask. “Just for a minute?”

“Of course,” Dave says, thankfully letting the subject drop. A minute later, they can hear Dave talking to Grace. “Hey, baby girl, guess who’s on the phone? Huh? Yeah, you wanna talk to Baba?” he coos at her, and Klaus’s heart melts. Dave is just so _perfect_ and sweet.

And then Grace is babbling down the line, and Klaus lights up, just the sound of her buoying them. “Hey, pumpkin!” they laugh. “Are you having fun with Abba today?” She makes a few happy sounds, lips smacking noisily, and Klaus’s heart swells with each syllable. “That’s great to hear! What have you two been doing, huh?” She continues to make nonsense noises, and Klaus is pretty sure she hits the phone at one point, but they’re content to let her, just absorbing her innocent joy. “That’s so great, baby. Baba will be home soon, I promise. Just a couple more hours with all your grouchy aunts and uncles, okay?”

She loses interest in the phone before terribly long, and Dave takes it back. Klaus is about halfway around the block by now, feeling much better than when they left, and Klaus is about as ready to go back as they think they’re going to get. Dave has just started telling them what Grace Kelly had gotten up to that morning, when ahead of Klaus, maybe a hundred yards or so down the sidewalk, a strangely familiar flash of blue appears, and a kid steps out, wearing an incredibly familiar uniform.

“Five?” they gasp, cutting Dave off mid-sentence. The boy looks up, nose bleeding, and it is, it’s absolutely him. They make eye contact and a second later, Five’s eyes roll back and his knees give out, dropping him to the concrete. “Holy shit! _Five!_ ”

Klaus rushes to his side, dropping to their knees, and distantly hears Dave calling his name. Klaus presses the phone back to their ear. “I, I have to go,” they stutter, hands reaching to check their brother for injuries. “My brother just showed up.”

“I thought--”

“The _missing_ one,” they clarify, prodding at Five’s ribs gently.

“Oh, shit. Alright. I’ll talk to you later.”

“Love you both,” Klaus says, grasping at their connection to Ben, preparing to drag him out here.

“Love you too,” Dave replies, and they hang up, shoving the phone in their pocket, and yank on Ben.

Between them, they get Five inside, but Klaus was about as far from the house as they could get, and by the time they get back, they can’t keep Ben corporeal anymore, and even trying to make him visible at this point would probably be pointless. Klaus is pretty sure they just broke their previous record by close to a minute. Vanya takes over Ben’s job, helping Klaus get Five to a sofa, and then Diego is shouting at Klaus, like it’s _their_ fault Five passed out, until Pogo is there, demanding an explanation.

Diego gets Mom, who comes in and immediately begins to fuss over Five, but seems entirely unphased to see him so small, hardly a day into the double digits. She declares that he’s fine, just exhausted, and tucks herself onto the couch, resting his head in her lap and petting at his hair.

Five wakes up a few minutes before Vanya returns with the others, and he seems so confused and nervous, so of course Luther starts interrogating the kid. Klaus tells him to knock it off and Vanya sits with Five, asking a single question, and gives him a chance to actually answer.

Klaus watches as Five puts together what had happened. He had jumped through time, right from that Sunday lunch in ‘99, and when he asks about Dad, probably ready to go show off and rub it in, Luther cuts him off with the most abrupt delivery of the news possible.

Five takes the news fairly well, no waterworks or angry outbursts, but he seems a little confused, especially when Luther and Diego start fighting again about whether it was murder or not. Everything comes to a standstill, though, when Five asks where Ben is.

None of them can easily answer, and no one is looking at him. He asks again, and then a third time, and he sounds heartbroken. Ben is asking, begging, demanding that Klaus tell them, that they tell _Five,_ that he’s here, and Klaus starts to pace, rubbing at their neck as they consider their options.

Klaus tunes out the others, Ben’s voice all they focus on for a minute. Klaus has never been able to convince their siblings that Ben was there, and they don’t know what would make things different now. They haven’t tried in years, don’t even talk to Ben around them anymore, and they’ve used up their power getting Five in the house, so Klaus can’t even prove it right now. But as much as the other four had denied what Klaus had tried to tell them, Five hasn’t had a chance, and he deserves to know Ben is still around.

Ben is staring at him, pleading with his eyes and his voice, and Klaus sighs, nodding. He turns back to the others, and finds Five crying as Mom makes her way from the room. Clearly, they have covered the basics of what had happened, and Five isn’t taking it nearly so well as Dad's death, which is working Ben up even more. “Alright, alright!” Klaus exclaims. “Ben has something to say.” Five’s gaze snaps to them and his tears stop, while the others all tense up. Yeah, this is gonna go _great._

“Seriously, Klaus?” Luther spits. “You’re gonna pull this shit _now?”_

“Ghost rights are human rights!” And maybe memes aren’t the best way of communicating with their siblings, but it’s what came out, and Klaus stands by it.

“We don’t need to confuse the kid anymore than he already is!” Diego snaps, knife in hand, as always.

“I’m not a kid!” Five protests. “And I’m not _confused!”_

Well, at least Five wants to listen. Klaus takes a moment to collect themself and let Ben tell them what to say. Then they pass the message along, telling Five how much Ben’s missed him, and that he loves him. They look around at the others and tell them that Ben loves them, too.

For their trouble, Klaus gets ordered out. They glance at Ben and shrug before leaving the room as requested. Ben stays behind, and Klaus pretends they don’t care. It’s fine. Five just got back, Ben wants to stay close, and Klaus refuses to entertain the thought that they’re jealous of the pipsqueak for it.

Not like the others all scooped _Klaus_ up and cried over _them_ when they showed up after years being MIA.

Klaus huffs, heading up the stairs. Of course they were concerned about Five, it had been two decades, and Five was so young when he disappeared. When Klaus took off, they all knew they were out there, getting high, and their biggest worry was if they’d drop in and rob them again. The most they probably felt upon seeing them was a temporary relief that they hadn’t dropped dead, followed by a paranoid dread that they were about to up end their lives with some crazy scheme or another.

Klaus just needs a few minutes alone, to practice the breathing techniques Pam has them using, and then they can put their boots on for the funeral, and get through the trainwreck it would be. After that, they could go home to Dave and Grace and forget about this whole disaster of a day. Not like the others would want them hanging around Five, anyway. Klaus would just be a bad example as far as they were concerned.


	19. 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The dough looks wrong, and Grace frowns. There is something wrong, and she can’t put her finger on it, it seems to slip from her grasp the more she tries to pin it down, and…
> 
> And…
> 
> …
> 
> Grace begins scooping cookies onto the tray, smiling to herself. Her children are home, including little Five, who has been gone so long, and she’s sure they’ll appreciate a surprise. She’s just putting the tray in the oven when Diego walks in.
> 
> “Hello, dear,” she greets, straightening up, smiling brightly. What a delight, she was always so happy when the kids would visit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's another double!!  
> also, new POV today, very exciting  
> I wasn't sure how well it would work, but when I sat down after like a 15 min break, I knew who it had to be, and I think it came out pretty good!  
> it's finally funeral time, guys!

Grace hums as she mixes, mind wandering. She’s felt… strange, lately. Foggy. Like she can’t keep a train of thought for more than a few minutes. It was Mr. Hargreeves, she knows, her programming was tampered with, but she can’t seem to recall why. He probably wiped some of her memory, also, and that…

…

What was she doing again? Oh, yes, cookies!

Grace leaves the bowl to preheat the oven and find a spoon to scoop the dough onto a sheet pan. The children had been upset, and Five was finally home, so she would make his favorite. Of course, the pantry was a little empty, and she may have had to make some substitutions, but it should be fine.

She pauses, staring into the sink, for a long moment, blinking back to herself as the oven rang, letting her know it was ready for the treats. Turning back to the table, she finds her dough, mixed but looking… odd. What kind of cookies was she making? Five’s favorites, that’s right, gingersnaps.

Except… The dough looks wrong, and Grace frowns. There is something wrong, and she can’t put her finger on it, it seems to slip from her grasp the more she tries to pin it down, and…

And…

…

Grace begins scooping cookies onto the tray, smiling to herself. Her children are home, including little Five, who has been gone so long, and she’s sure they’ll appreciate a surprise. She’s just putting the tray in the oven when Diego walks in.

“Hello, dear,” she greets, straightening up, smiling brightly. What a delight, she was always so happy when the kids would visit.

“Hey, Ma,” he says, watching her strangely closely. That’s right, she’s been behaving oddly, hasn’t she? Mr. Hargreeves had… He had done something. Why can’t she recall? “Mom?” Diego says, and she blinks, looking to him again.

“What can I do for you, Diego?” she asks, wiping her hands on her apron, except, oh, she isn’t wearing one, and now she’s dirtied her dress. Well, nothing a good scrub won’t fix.

“Mom,” Diego says, stepping closer and catching her hands as she grabs a towel to wipe the sticky dough, what kind of dough again?, from her dress. “We’re heading out for the funeral. Are you ready?”

Grace blinks, tipping her head, and remembers. “Oh, that’s right. The funeral. Yes, let’s do that.” Mr. Hargreeves had died, he had done something to her, something to stop her from… From what? Why can’t she remember? Had he done something to her memory banks as well? Why couldn’t she…

…

…

…

Diego has led her outside, and it’s raining, and the children are all here, even Five, and Grace is so glad to see them all, but she can’t remember what they’re doing out here, why they’re all standing in the rain. “Did something happen?” she asks, smiling at them all, just like always, and the children look at her, confusion on their faces.

“Dad died,” Diego says softly, holding her elbow. “Remember?”

“Oh, yes, of course,” she says, and how could she have forgotten? That is so strange…

“Is something wrong with Mom?” Five asks from between Vanya and Allison.

“She’s fine,” Diego says, and it’s sweet of him, but she has this feeling that something isn’t right. “She’s just tired, needs to recharge.”

That doesn’t sound right, she feels well-charged, but perhaps Diego is right. Something is strange, her thoughts blowing about like threads in the wind, and…

What had Mr. Hargreeves done again?

Pogo nods to Luther, who steps forward, a little vase, looking so much smaller, in his oversized hands, and tips it over, a fine-grained sand pouring to the ground in a messy pile. “Um, probably would have been better with some wind,” he says, shuffling back into line with the others, and Grace watches with a small smile, trying to remember whose ashes those were.

Then Pogo makes a speech, reminding Grace that it was Mr. Hargreeves they were mourning here today. Diego interrupts, anger on his tongue and in his words, calling their father a monster, a bad person, a horrible father. His words stick in Grace’s chest, and she can’t recognize what this feeling is.

“Diego,” Allison says softly, but Diego won’t have it.

“My  _ name _ is Number Two, because our  _ father _ couldn’t be bothered to give us actual names. He had Mom do it, well after we knew that numbers aren’t names.”

Grace perks up with a bright smile, remembering the snack she had put in the oven. “Would anyone like something to eat?”

“No, Mom, it’s alright,” Vanya murmurs.

“Oh, okay,” Grace agrees, and, what was the snack she had for them again?

Diego is speaking again, his anger mostly directed at Pogo and Luther. “If you wanna pay your respects, fine. But at least be honest with yourselves about the kind of man he really was.”

“You should stop talking,” Luther warns, and this all feels so close to turning into a fight. Why were they so angry?

“You, of all people, should be on my side, Number One,” Diego spits, and Grace frowns. She hates seeing her boys fighting. “After everything he  _ did _ to you? And then he ships you to the  _ moon.” _

“I’m warning you,” Luther growls. “Stop. Talking.”

“A million miles away! Because he couldn’t stand to  _ look _ at you.”

And with that, Luther and Diego are on each other, hitting and ducking and swearing. Allison takes Grace by the arm, pulling her back, and Klaus steps in front of Five, one arm shielding him while the other holds her umbrella.

Pogo calls for the boys to settle down, but they aren’t listening. What is all this fighting about? She watches in awe as they continue to trade blows, until Luther strikes Ben’s statue and it comes toppling down, the head breaking off and rolling across the courtyard.

Diego throws a knife, nicking Luther’s arm pretty badly, but Grace feels no impulse to gather the supplies to fix him up, and that’s strange, isn’t it? Her primary function is caretaking, but there is a gap in her program. How did that happen?

Luther grabs his arm, covering the cut and exposed skin, and hurries inside. Allison hurries after him a moment later, and Vanya approaches Diego, a deep frown on her face. “You never know when to stop, do you?”

Diego spits back, “Got enough material for your sequel yet?” and Vanya leaves in the same direction as the others. Diego follows soon enough, taking Grace’s arm and leading her into the house. “Let’s get you charged, okay? You’ll feel better after some rest.” Grace doesn’t think that’s the problem, but lets him guide her through the house.

Charging can’t hurt, and she loves the view Mr. Hargreeves had given her at the station.

~~~

Klaus lights a cigarette as they step into the courtyard, and puffs away at it through the disconcerting conversation with Mom, which Diego is totally in denial about, but Klaus is not in the mood to deal with  _ him _ at the moment. Pogo gives a shitty little speech, after Luther dumps the ashes into a damp pile, which pisses Diego off more, and then Numbers One and Two are at each other’s throats.

Klaus rolls their eyes, because can’t these two do  _ anything _ else? If any of Klaus’s old friends had had this kind of tension, they would have been trying to get them to just fuck already, but they were pretty sure their brothers wouldn’t respond as well to that suggestion.

Klaus steps in front of Five as the idiots get rougher, trying to keep the kid from getting hurt, still sucking on the cancer stick, and they really need to quit, but it's their last vice. They don’t smoke in the apartment, or anywhere near Grace Kelly, and maybe they shouldn’t have lit up so close to Five, but they were in the open and they hadn’t been standing together when this started.

Eventually, everyone heads inside, one at a time, until it’s just Klaus, Ben, and Five. Sighing, Klaus hands their umbrella to Five, who is staring after the others with wide eyes, and walks over to the muddy pile that was once their father, crouching down. “Well, bet you just  _ loved _ that, huh?” they mumble, taking one last drag, and put it out in the ashes. Standing up, they walk back to Five. “Well. Best funeral you ever been to, or what?” they ask, putting an arm around Five’s shoulders and leading him inside.

Five looks up at them, and Klaus can see how confused and upset he is, even if he won’t voice it. “Hey, it’s alright. You know them, they just like to fight.” Five doesn’t answer, just swallows and looks back in the direction of the felled statue for a moment.

As they step inside and Klaus closes the umbrella, Five glances around the mudroom before asking, “Is Ben… really here?” His voice is soft and small and, Christ, he sounds so much more vulnerable than Klaus can ever recall hearing from their most self-assured sibling.

“Yeah,” Klaus says, giving the best smile they can conjure up. “I’d make him visible, but I used up my mojo getting him to help me drag you inside.”

“Oh.” Klaus isn’t sure if that small note is one of doubt or simply disappointment, but they hope Five believes them.

“I promise, as soon as I’m juiced up again, he’ll give you the  _ best _ hug,” Klaus says, putting their hand on his back and rubbing gently, surprised he lets them, and leads him towards the kitchen. The kid is probably starving, he’d run out on lunch and now it’s been hours.

Five hums, giving a small, absent nod, and murmurs, “I… might like that.” Klaus grins, glancing at Ben and shooting him a thumbs up. Ben grins back, and Klaus knows that, one way or another, tonight is not going to end as simply as they’d anticipated. There was no running home to Dave and putting the family out of mind until the next funeral, not with Five home and Mom… breaking down.

But for now, Klaus puts their attention to finding something edible left in the house.


	20. 20

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “There’s nothing wrong with Mom,” Diego insists.
> 
> “Nothing-- Diego, she’s had to ask what’s going on today at _least_ twice, and she almost burned the place down with cookies!” Klaus exclaims, gesturing to the sink. Diego frowns and comes over to look.
> 
> “What the hell?” he mumbles, peeling one of the burnt bricks from the pan. “What are even _in_ these?” he asks, cracking it in half to examine.
> 
> “Beats me,” Klaus shrugs. “But considering how little food there is around here, I get the feeling she may have gotten… _creative.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> fuck, guys, this is my third post in like 7 hours, and I sat on it for like an hour and a half bc my friend called and I got very distracted and, now that it is 5 am, decided it was done enough where I stopped

Five isn’t surprised when Luther and Diego start yelling at each other again, they were always fighting about something or other. But when they start throwing punches, he can’t deny the spike of fear that shoots through him. Luther is just _so big_ now, and Diego has _so many knives,_ they could really hurt each other. The only time they used to fight like this was during training, when Dad said they had to. They didn’t like each other, but they didn’t want to _hurt_ each other.

When the statue comes crashing down, Five flinches, accidentally trying to jump, but he’s still worn out and only fizzles back an inch or so. If Luther had connected, that punch could have _killed_ Diego, he was certain, and that scares him, deeply. And then Diego throws a knife and actually cuts Luther, and their sisters don’t even seem particularly _surprised_ by the fight, which is even more frightening. Was this really such a common occurrence now?

Five doesn’t know what Diego means when he asks if Vanya has enough material for a sequel, and looking at Klaus doesn’t give him much to go off. She’s standing just in front of him, like she has been since the first swing, watching the other two. Five watches Diego as he takes Mom in, staring after them, and his heart is beating so hard, he can hear his blood rushing in his ears.

Klaus presses her umbrella into his hand, and he numbly takes it as she crosses the courtyard, leaving him frozen to the spot. How had they ended up like this? They used to be friendly enough, if overly competitive, but now… Five’s eyes are stinging again, and he takes a quick breath, lifting his arm to wipe at them.

They could have killed each other, and Five doesn’t know if they care or not.

A minute later, Klaus comes back to his side, putting an arm around him. He looks up, and he doesn’t know what she sees, but she tries to reassure him, claiming they just like to fight. Five swallows, unsure how to respond to that, and looks back at the statue Luther had knocked down. He had really put his strength into that, and if Diego hadn’t been fast enough…

Five shakes his head, letting Klaus lead him inside. He could figure this out, find out why they hated each other now, and when he goes back, he can fix it.

Once inside, Five pauses while Klaus puts the umbrella up, glancing around. Klaus said Ben was here, and he would figure that out, too, there was no point going back if he couldn’t help his brothers, but if Ben is here, now, Five wishes he could see him. And what if Ben’s _not_ here? Luther and Diego are so much angrier now, and the others all said Klaus is a liar, but she wouldn’t lie about _Ben,_ would she?

“Is Ben… really here?” he asks, because he has to know. His voice feels weak, and that’s no good, he’s always so certain when he speaks, firm and decisive in his words. But it has been a long, overwhelming, _exhausting_ day.

Klaus smiles, nodding, and explains she’s out of energy. Five isn’t sure how much control Klaus has over her powers these days, but she had always struggled with them when they were kids, complaining that she didn’t like them. “Oh,” he says softly, wondering who, exactly, he’s supposed to believe, when they’re all so strange and foreign to him now.

Klaus puts a hand on Five’s back, rubbing gently between his shoulder blades. It feels nice, different from Vanya’s or Allison’s touch, but it’s comforting, so he lets it continue. And then she promises, “As soon as I’m juiced up, he’ll give you the _best_ hug.”

“I… might like that,” he hums, letting Klaus lead him to the kitchen. Glancing up, he catches Klaus smiling at an empty space, and that has to be Ben, right? Klaus wouldn’t fake something like that. She liked to play tricks and practical jokes sometimes, but the others had to be wrong about this. Klaus would never try to deceive him about something so important.

Entering the kitchen, Five notices a smell, and he doesn’t know _what_ it is, but it is _not_ good. Klaus also notices, taking her hand from his back to fan the air. “What the fuck?” she says, and they both zero in on the oven, where smoke is starting to escape. “Oh shit,” she hisses, and grabs his arm, dragging him back a few feet. “Stay here,” she instructs, which Five does _not_ appreciate, before rushing off and returning a moment later with a fire extinguisher. She approaches the oven, takes a deep breath, and opens the door.

Thankfully, there’s no fire yet, but whatever was cooking is burnt to a crisp. Five coughs as more smoke billows out, but not so much as it might fill the room. Klaus reaches over the stove to turn it off, swearing again, and grabs a hot pad, pulling a cookie sheet out and dumping it in the sink. “What in the love of the Devil?” Klaus says, staring down at sink. Then she turns back to the oven, turning on the hood fan.

“Are those the cookies Mom went to make?” Five asks, remembering how confused she seemed to be.

Klaus shrugs, stretching over the sink to open the window as well. “Looks like it. She had the oven _way_ too hot.”

Once Klaus has the fan on and the window open, the smoke dissipates fairly quickly, but the smell lingers as Klaus starts digging through the cupboards. “You’ve gotta be hungry by now, huh?” she asks, and Five nods, moving to the fridge and pulling it open. There isn’t much there, and Klaus doesn’t seem to be having much luck, either.

Allison comes in, heels clicking on the floor. “What happened here?” she asks, looking at the sink.

“We think Mom was making cookies,” Klaus says, digging through a cupboard while kneeling on the counter.

“What?”

“Almost had a fire on our hands.” Klaus pulls a jar of peanut butter out, waving it in victory. “If we find some bread and marshmallows, we can pig out Five-style.” Five wrinkles his nose at her phrasing, but a sandwich _does_ sound good.

“Where’s Vanya?” Allison asks.

“Oh, I think she’s already left,” Klaus says. “Which is ridiculous, we haven’t even _discussed_ the will reading.”

“I haven’t even seen a will,” Allison huffs.

“Well, maybe we’ll just have to split it all up ourselves, then,” Klaus replies, hopping down to start digging through the lower cupboards. Five tries the breadbox, but the loaf inside is dry and crusty and may be starting to mold. “Y’know, all Even Stevens.”

Allison snorts, and Five looks at her, because that had sounded so much like her old laugh, and their eyes meet. “Well,” she sighs. “We’ll have to make this a two-day thing, I guess. There’s a lot to figure out, yet.”

Diego comes in, then, walking fast, and pauses to tell them he’s leaving. “Oh, out to crack some skulls, are we?” Klaus asks, standing up.

Diego rolls his eyes, continuing towards the door. “Saving lives, actually,” he corrects, and Five steps a little closer.

“Like missions?” he asks.

“More like vigilante work,” Allison says, turning a fake smile on Diego. “Hope you don’t get yourself killed.”

“Aw, thanks, love you too,” Diego replies, but Five gets the distinct feeling that they’re being mean to each other.

“Hey, before you get in the Batmobile, we should probably talk about some stuff,” Klaus says.

“Like _what?”_ Diego asks, and he looks irritated.

“Uh, liiiiiiiike, Dad’s will? Orrrrr what the _fuck_ is going on with Mom?”

“Klaus, don’t swear in front of Five!” Allison scolds, and Five rolls his eyes.

“I _know_ the word fuck, Allison.”

“Ah!” Klaus exclaims, flailing her hand at him. “No swearing for babies!”

“I’m not a baby!” Five says, and no, stomping his foot does _not_ invalidate what he’s said.

“There’s nothing wrong with Mom,” Diego insists.

“Nothing-- Diego, she’s had to ask what’s going on today at _least_ twice, and she almost burned the place down with cookies!” Klaus exclaims, gesturing to the sink. Diego frowns and comes over to look.

“What the hell?” he mumbles, peeling one of the burnt bricks from the pan. “What are even _in_ these?” he asks, cracking it in half to examine.

“Beats me,” Klaus shrugs. “But considering how little food there is around here, I get the feeling she may have gotten… _creative.”_

“What does that mean?” Five asks.

“They probably wouldn’t have been edible even if she hadn’t set them on fire.”

“Oh.”

“Alright, look, Mom’s already on the charger, we can deal with all this tomorrow,” Diego says, dropping the “cookie” back in the sink. “I’ve got shit to do--”

“Don’t you swear either,” Allison interrupts.

“--so I’ll see you losers tomorrow.” He reaches out and _pats_ Five on the head. Five snarls and blinks back, powers dragging him _just_ out from under Diego’s hand. The time travel had really taken it out of him.

“Five, you’re gonna strain yourself,” Klaus says, reaching for his shoulder and pulling him back a little further.

“Tell him not to treat me like a baby!”

“Oh, Diego doesn’t listen to anyone but Mommy, anything I say will go right through his head.”

“Whatever, I’m outta here,” Diego huffs, striding away again.

“Hey, you wanna go get dinner instead?” Klaus calls. “Fivey’s hungry!”

“Feed him yourself, I’m busy!” he shouts back, the door slamming a second later.

“Well. Someone’s grumpy.”

“What do you expect after a day like this?” Allison sighs. “Look, I’ve gotta make some calls, change my flight if I’m staying another day. Can you…” She trails off, glancing at Five.

“I can take care of myself,” he says, crossing his arms.

“Of course, it’s just, you should have some adult supervision, and Klaus isn’t exactly…”

“I think I can handle getting him some food and tucking him in, Allie,” Klaus says, and she’s smiling, but it almost feels angry, and Five wishes he understood what, exactly, had caused his siblings to all hate each other like this. They used to be close, maybe not best friends, but they were family and loved each other.

Didn’t they?

Allison sighs, nodding. “Alright, fine, he’s yours for the night, then. See you in the morning.”

“Night night, Al!” Klaus calls, waving one hand, and Five is surprised to realize it has words tattooed across the palm: GOODBYE.

“Did that hurt?” he gasps. Klaus blinks, looking to him and then down at her hand.

“Oh. Yeah, they swole up like a bitch,” she says, lifting her other hand, where Five sees HELLO printed as well. “Couldn’t do a thing for ages, but the drugs really helped during the actual inking process. Probably wouldn’t’ve got through ‘em if I hadn’t been so doped up.” Five stares, once more confused and surprised by his siblings. Klaus snaps her head up, looking at empty space again. “My bad,” she mumbles, then turns back to Five. “So! What do you wanna eat?”

Five shrugs, looking around again. “Not much to pick from.”

Klaus waves one hand, and starts towards the stairs, Five following behind. “We’ll go out. You pick what you want, I’m gonna change, and we’ll go, alright?”

“We’re going… out?” Five repeats.

“Uh, yeah,” Klaus says, looking back at him, one eyebrow raised. “When’s the last time you had junk food?”


	21. 21

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Five turns back to Klaus, leans in a bit, and asks, “Was this place always such a shithole?”
> 
> Ben and Klaus both start to laugh, because, wow, hearing a word like that, out of such a tiny face? Comedy gold.
> 
> Klaus finally stops laughing as Five narrows his eyes, lips pressing together. “Sorry, sorry, I just…” Klaus wipes at his eyes with a finger. “Hoo, Allison is gonna be so unimpressed by that potty mouth of yours. Where did you learn such bad words?”
> 
> Five huffs, rolling his eyes. “You, mostly,” he says.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe how much I've gotten done, guys. The full word count is already 42k out of 50! I know I've been spoiling us the last couple nights, but I do have work the next few days, so it'll probably slow down a little.  
> we're back to Ben, and Five is being. so. cute.  
> the conversation went differently than I planned, but I think this is better.  
> hope ya'll enjoy!!

Ben sticks close to Five as he follows Klaus to the garage. Klaus has changed back into his pants and put his shirt back on, leaving the skirt in a pile on the floor, and Five had asked if they could go to Griddy’s, which has to be the only place Five has ever even _been,_ and Klaus grinned, clapping his hands together. “Sounds perfect!” Now they were heading to the garage, and Ben can only imagine Klaus is planning to “borrow” the car.

Klaus directs Five to the backseat, and he pouts, which is _adorable._ “Why can’t I sit up front with you?”

“Gotta be this tall to ride,” Klaus teases, holding his hand at his shoulder, a solid foot above Five’s head. The ten-year-old glares, but gets in the back. Ben slides into the front, but sits sideways, still watching him.

Ben is kind of glad Five can’t see him right now, because he is absolutely being weird. But he can hardly stand to take his eyes off of him, like he might just disappear again. Klaus doesn’t seem to have this problem, as he is half-under the steering column, hotwiring the car. As it sparks to life, Klaus straightens up, grinning. “Still got it, baby!”

“You are such a bad influence,” Ben sighs, shaking his head.

“Ah, lighten up, not like I had him up here _learning_ to do it,” Klaus responds, shaking the loose hairs from his face. Five looks up, glancing from Klaus to the empty seat Ben is in, but his eyes go right through him, and now he wishes he _could_ see him.

“What did Ben say?” he asks, and Ben grins.

“Oh, he’s just being a worrywart, says I’m gonna end up corrupting you with my misbehavior,” Klaus says airily, and Ben rolls his eyes. Not quite what he said, but close enough, he supposes. Five doesn’t reply to that, but he continues looking towards Ben, leaning back against the seat. “Buckle up, kiddo,” Klaus reminds him, and Five finally turns away to fasten his seatbelt.

Then they’re pulling out of the garage, and Ben tears his eyes from Five to watch the road. Klaus really shouldn’t be driving, he doesn’t have a license and, while he sees fewer meandering ghosts now that he’s on medication, Klaus still sometimes has trouble telling the living from the dead, which makes things a little more dangerous.

At least he’s obeying the speed limits. Ben remembers pretty vividly the last time Klaus got behind the wheel, when he got into a high-speed chase that ended in a corn field the year after Vanya’s book came out. Klaus had been so high on a cocktail of things Ben couldn’t even _name_ , that he kept saying he couldn’t feel his face, right up until they hit the tractor. That had resulted in another stint in jail, followed by rehab, and Ben doesn’t think Klaus would appreciate being reminded, or having the tale related to Five.

So Ben watches the road, having an easier time telling dead from living as a ghost himself. The drive is quiet other than the radio that Klaus only fiddles with at a red light, which is surprisingly responsible of him, and Ben takes the moment to look back at Five again. He’s staring out the window now, probably taking in how different-yet-similar the city seems after so long. He watches for a moment, and Five lets out a heavy little sigh, slumping a bit more against the car door, resting his forehead on the glass.

The light changes, and Ben turns back to the road, but can’t help shooting glances at the rearview mirror. Ben wishes he could ask what’s wrong. He could tell Klaus to ask, but besides his usual reluctance to talk to their siblings about Ben, he also tends to paraphrase or embellish Ben’s words. He decides to let Five be for now, this has to be a lot to take in, and after the jump he’d made, Ben wouldn’t be surprised if he were about ready to pass out again.

Klaus pulls into Griddy’s a few minutes later, the shop still lit up but fairly empty. It’s not terribly late, but it’s well past dark, now, and the parking lot lights don’t work as well as they could. Once parked, Klaus turns in his seat, shooting a grin back at their brother. “You ready for some empty carbs and a sugar crash?”

Five lifts his head, blinking, and Ben realizes he may have been drifting off, or at the very least lost in thought. He nods and slides from the car as Klaus hops out and stretches. He slings an arm around Five and leads him inside. They take a seat at a booth in the corner, where they can have a little privacy, and Ben slides onto the bench beside Five. Klaus smirks, but doesn’t say anything, and a moment later a waitress approaches. “Hello there, fellas, what can I get for you?”

Klaus looks at Five, eyebrow quirked. “Whatcha feelin’, bud?”

Five blinks his eyes, looking back to Klaus from his staring around at the place. “Um…”

“You always liked blueberry glazed, right?” Klaus prompts, and Five nods, face brightening again. “Great, we’ll take two of those, aaaand a bear claw for myself. If I could also get a coffee, that would be _fantastic.”_

“And to drink for the kid?” Klaus tips his head back at Five, who looks up at the waitress, and Ben’s pretty sure this is the same lady that used to serve them when they were kids, too, and asks for a mug of hot chocolate. “Comin’ right up,” she says, smiling as she jots down their order, and then walks back to the kitchen.

Five turns back to Klaus, leans in a bit, and asks, “Was this place always such a shithole?”

Ben and Klaus both start to laugh, because, wow, hearing a word like that, out of such a tiny face? Comedy gold.

And, no, it probably had been closer to as nice as Five remembers, considering the last time they’d all seven gone was the night before their tenth birthday, six weeks ago, as far as Five was concerned, but in twenty years, it had become pretty outdated and business seemed to have declined, meaning they probably couldn’t afford to maintain the upkeep. Klaus had been a pretty regular customer to the dumpster out back in the years he was on the streets, and he’s been in a couple of times with Dave, just to show him his old childhood haunt, but it’s been a long time since Klaus hung out in this part of town, happier to stay as far from the Academy as he could.

Five frowns at Klaus’s laughter, eyes darting to either side of him, and leans back, crossing his arms. Ben settles first, wishing he could wrap Five up in his arms, maybe try tickling him, anything to get him to join in. It was such a rare occasion to hear his laughter in the first place, Ben isn’t sure he really remembers what it sounds like.

Klaus finally stops laughing as Five narrows his eyes, lips pressing together. “Sorry, sorry, I just…” Klaus wipes at his eyes with a finger. “Hoo, Allison is gonna be so unimpressed by that potty mouth of yours. Where did you learn such bad words?”

Five huffs, rolling his eyes. “You, mostly,” he says.

“Ah, shit, that’s true, huh?” Ben nods in agreement, Klaus was always the one getting into trouble, even when they were kids, and bringing home swears he’d heard during a trip out of the house was just one of about a hundred things he’d done that Dad didn’t approve of.

“Yeah, and at this rate, Gracie is gonna be just as bad,” Ben quips, earning a dirty look, but it’s playful, and they both know Ben’s right, anyway.

Five glances to the side, where Klaus is glaring. “What? What’d he say?”

“Mm, just reiterating what a bad influence I am,” Klaus sighs, shaking his head with a smile.

“Allison thinks so, too, doesn’t she?” he asks.

Klaus shrugs, reaching to the end of the table to drag the sugar shaker to himself, flipping the tab as he speaks. “Yeah, well, they aren’t exactly wrong. I mean, we are having donuts for dinner, and I did steal Dad’s car.”

Before Five can respond, the waitress returns, setting everything on the table for them. “Enjoy. Just flag me down if you need anything else.”

“Thank yooouu… Agnes,” Klaus says, dragging out the word as he squints at her nametag. “I think we’re set, but we’ll let you know.” She walks away, and Klaus turns back to Five. “If you’re still hungry after those, we’ll see if we can’t find some real food, alright?”

Five nods, but Ben’s pretty sure, judging by the size of the desserts, that Five may not even finish them both. They both dig in, and Ben watches as Five hums happily around his first bite. Klaus groans around his as well, moaning, “Better than I remember.” He also adds a more-than-generous helping of sugar to his coffee.

Conversation tapers off as they eat, which is weird for Klaus, who usually likes to hear himself talk, even through a mouth full of food, but when Ben glances up from watching Five, he finds Klaus watching him, too, eyes a bit distant, and he figures he’s lost in thought. And that’s fair, there’s a lot to think about. Five showing up means a number of things are up in the air, now.

Five notices Klaus staring when he reaches for his hot chocolate. He scrunches up his eyebrows, hand wrapping around the mug, and asks, “What?” His voice is a little thick, donut sticking to his tongue. Klaus blinks and straightens up a bit, smiling.

“Oh, nothin’, just thinking,” he says.

Five frowns but doesn’t reply, taking a drink of his hot chocolate. Setting it back down, he asks, throat cleared now, “About what?”

“Oh, just grown-up stuff,” Klaus promises, waving his hand. Five’s frown deepens and he obviously doesn’t like that answer.

“I’m not a little kid,” he complains, second donut still untouched on his plate. “And I’m not _dumb,_ you’re thinking about _me.”_

Ben grimaces, glancing at Klaus. Five had always been the brightest of them, and trying to convince him he didn’t need to know or worry about it would just upset him further. Klaus meets his eyes for a second, and turns back to Five.

“Okay, you know what? You’re right. I know you aren’t dumb, Five,” he says, and Five relaxes, picking up his other donut and breaking a piece off, sticking it in his mouth, still watching Klaus, waiting for him to continue. “I was just wondering what we should do next. It’s getting kinda late and I’m sure you’re about ready to get to bed, huh?”

Five swallows, nodding a little. “Time travel is hard,” he murmurs.

“Yeah, I bet,” Klaus chuckles. “So I was just working out our options.”

“Options?”

“Yeah. Way I see it, we can take the car back to the house and you can go to bed in your old room, but it’s probably not the most welcoming, considering no one’s touched it since you left.”

Ben nodded, having peeked into his own old room last time they visited, not particularly wanting to follow Klaus around as he snatched anything he could fit in his pockets. It had been cold and dusty and dark, and Five’s room was probably worse.

“Or?” Five asks, lifting his mug for another sip.

“Or, I can take you back to my place, let you crash on the couch, and we’ll take the car back tomorrow.”

Ben turns to Klaus, surprised. None of the others have been to the apartment, none of them even knew Klaus _had_ an apartment. As far as Ben knows, they think he walked in today off the street and are probably expecting him to be crashing at the house, too. “You don’t think they might freak out if you guys aren’t there in the morning?” he asks. Klaus shrugs but doesn’t answer verbally, which is annoying, after how openly he’s been responding, but he probably doesn’t want Five to worry about it. Ben still sticks his tongue out and flips Klaus off.

“You have an apartment?”

“Well, yeah, you didn’t think we all still live at home, did ya?” Klaus teases. Five shrugs, picking at his donut again. “Oh, no, Diego and Vanya and I all have places of our own in town, Allison lives on the other coast, and Luther’s been on the moon for years.”

Five looks up, chewing slowly, and speaks clumsily around it. “Lu’fer rea’ry wen’ ta the moo’?” Ben snorts, rolling his eyes.

“Oh, yeah, he’s been up there doing God-knows-what for, what, four years now?” Klaus directs the question at Ben, who nods in return. “Right. I don’t know _why,_ Dad just sent him up there to do some kinda research or something.”

Five nods, swallowing, and looks down at the last bite on his plate. “If I wanted to go home,” he starts, voice low and soft, and Ben can practically see the fatigue in his frame, “would you stay, too?”

“Uh, yeah, I mean…” Klaus glances at Ben, and Ben knows Klaus doesn’t want to stay there. Ben shrugs, this is Klaus’s call, and he looks back at Five. “It’s not my favorite place to be, but everyone else is already gone or in bed, and somebody’s gotta keep an eye on ya.”

Five fidgets, picking up the donut but not putting it in his mouth yet. He looks up again, and, yeah, he’s so ready to crash, it’s almost cute. “I don’t need a babysitter,” he mumbles, and Ben watches as his fingers accidentally squish the last of the donut between them. Five doesn’t seem to even notice.

“Of course not,” Klaus agrees. “But I don’t wanna leave you alone.”

Five blinks, and for a second his eyes don’t open right away. He slowly drags his eyelids up again, lifting his head a bit, and sniffs, eyes starting to water. “Can… It’s really okay to go home with you?”

“Of course,” Klaus says, reaching across the table, taking Five’s hands, and starts pulling the pulped donut from between his fingers. “I’ve got a couple roommates, but you’ll be alright on the couch. Nobody’s gonna bother you.” He grabs a napkin and starts wiping Five’s fingers clean, and Ben can hardly believe how pliable their little brother is being right now, not pulling away or complaining, just blinking sleepily and struggling to keep his head up. Klaus smiles, laughing softly as he says, “And if they do, I’ll kick their ass.”

Five nods and pulls one hand from Klaus’s, rubbing at his eyes. “Okay.” Klaus hums and squeezes the hand he’s still holding.

“Great. Let’s go pay, and then we can get you to bed, alright?” Five hums in agreement and they all get up, Klaus keeping a hand on Five’s shoulder as they make their way to the register.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> one guess who's POV is next!
> 
> *hint* we haven't seen him in a whiii~iile


	22. 22

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A minute later, arms full of bedding, his phone pings again. Dumping his load onto the futon, he looks and finds a picture that nearly knocks the air out of him.
> 
> It’s a kid, in the back of a car Dave doesn’t recognize, leaning heavily against the door, obviously already asleep. Dave blinks a couple times, trying to process what this means, where the hell Klaus even found the kid, when another text comes in.
> 
> **Klaus <3:** 5 is very sleepy, time travel is a bitch

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DAVE!!!  
> Alright, guys, so I got up early to write this, I usually do my writing in the evening after work, but I was so excited for this chapter, I had to get up.  
> Due to the time crunch (I am heading to work the second this is posted), it feels a little rushed, but I got what I wanted down. I didn't give quite as thorough of a proofread to this chapter, so please forgive me if there are more errors than usual.  
> And thank you all for your lovely comments, they are really keeping me fed!!

Dave is settled on the futon, book in hand and phone on the cushion by his feet, stubbornly silent hours since Klaus’s call. He resolutely keeps his eyes on the page, refusing to check for a missed text that he knows isn’t there, even though he hasn’t turned the page in ages. He knows Klaus is busy, that they’ll get in touch when they can, but it’s already dark, Grace is tucked in bed, sound asleep, and Dave is getting anxious.

The call that afternoon had been a bit worrying, between Klaus’s obvious issues talking with their siblings, Vanya in particular, and the sudden end to the call when their missing brother apparently showed up. At this point, Dave won’t be surprised if Klaus stays the night, but they didn’t take anything with them to make that comfortable, and he knows Klaus hates being in that house.

He’s sure the phone will ring any minute, if for nothing but another vent before crashing on a couch for the night. He takes a deep breath, sighing, and refocuses on the page, trying, once more, to maybe get through this paragraph.

A moment later, his phone  _ finally _ pings with a text, and Dave tosses the book aside to scoop it up.

**Klaus <3:** hey baby, I’m heading home, today has been insane

Dave lets out a soft sigh of relief, shoulders finally relaxing and, geez, he’d been a bit more tense than he’d realized. Before he can reply, another text pops up.

**Klaus <3:** could you do me a teensy favor and set up the futon with the extra blankets? xoxo

Dave lifts an eyebrow at the request, but he’s already up and heading to gather them as he texts Klaus back.

**Davey:** sure thing, doll. can I ask who’s sleeping on it?

A minute later, arms full of bedding, his phone pings again. Dumping his load onto the futon, he looks and finds a picture that nearly knocks the air out of him.

It’s a kid, in the back of a car Dave doesn’t recognize, leaning heavily against the door, obviously already asleep. Dave blinks a couple times, trying to process what this means, where the hell Klaus even found the kid, when another text comes in.

**Klaus <3:** 5 is very sleepy, time travel is a bitch

Dave blinks again, because that is wild, but he supposes not the  _ wildest _ thing he’s heard, after so long with Klaus. Shaking his head, Dave replies once more before getting to work making up the bed.

**Davey:** alright, then, see you soon, be safe

Klaus replies with a string of X’s and O’s, followed by about a dozen heart-emojis, and Dave smiles, rolling his eyes.

Forty minutes later, the bell rings and Dave buzzes Klaus up, even though he  _ knows _ they have a key, but with a sleepy little brother, they may have their hands full. He opens the door and watches the elevator at the end of the hall, waiting for it to open, and soon enough, there they are. Klaus has the boy in their arms, little head tucked into their shoulder, and they smile when they see him waiting.

“Hey,” they whisper when they reach the apartment, pressing a quick peck to his lips, and then they’re readjusting their hold on their brother and heading straight for the futon. Dave follows along, closing the door after pausing just a moment so Ben can come in first, not that he knows if Ben was in front of or behind the other two, but it was only polite.

Dave crosses the apartment to join Klaus, where he’s depositing the sleeping child on the couch-turned-bed, and, god, the kid really is young. “So this is Five, huh?” he asks softly.

“Yeah,” Klaus sighs, staring down at him for a moment. “Would you go get me some shorts and a t-shirt? I’m gonna get him out of that uniform.”

“No problem,” Dave says, and makes his way back to their bedroom. He peeks over at Grace, but she’s still sleeping heavily, so he busies himself with finding some of Klaus’s clothes the kid can wear. Returning, he sees Klaus has already removed the jacket and is currently wrestling Five out of the button down underneath.

“Oh, come on, kiddo,” they’re muttering, tugging at a sleeve that seems to be stuck at his elbow. Smiling at the scene, Dave approaches, silently joining Klaus in their endeavors. Together, they get him out of the shirt, and Dave starts untying his shoes while Klaus pulls the new shirt over his head.

Five stirs a little, but Klaus just hushes him with a few quiet words, and he drifts back off. Dave lets Klaus get Five out of the slacks and into the shorts, figuring the kid might be uncomfortable if Dave continues to assist. Once Klaus has him changed, they tuck him in, and Dave can hear them whisper a few words, but he doesn’t quite catch them.

Standing up, Klaus turns to where Ben must be, probably also hovering over their long-lost brother. “I’m fucking wiped, can you just… keep an eye on him?” Dave can’t hear or see Ben’s response, but Klaus seems satisfied and thanks him, turning back to Dave. “Sorry it’s so late, it’s been a long day.”

Dave gives them a little smile and wraps Klaus up in his arms, tipping their head to press a kiss to their forehead. “It’s alright. Let’s go snuggle up, and you can tell me all about it, okay?”

Klaus nods, smiling. “Alright.”

The two of them shuffle off to their room, wishing Ben a goodnight, and once Klaus is out of their clothes and into pajamas, they crawl into bed, Dave pulling them close, and, after a moment, Klaus starts relating their day.

And Klaus wasn’t kidding, it was a long, tiring day. When they mention the box they took, which they had brought home and now was tucked away in the closet for pawning later, Dave lifts an eyebrow, but Klaus just huffs. “No one is going to miss it,” they insist, and Dave doesn’t argue. A little bit of thievery isn’t new, and he doubts their siblings would take any legal action.

Then they tell him that they told the others Ben was there, and Dave pulls back just a little, so he can get a better look at Klaus. “Seriously?”

Klaus rolls their eyes. “Not like they believed me for a second, and by that point I couldn’t even get him visible. I have no idea what they told Five about it after they basically glared me out of the room. Ben could probably fill me in, but…” Klaus hesitates, just for a moment, and Dave squeezes them gently. “It’s stupid, but I don’t think I really  _ want _ to know what they had to say. It couldn’t have been too bad, he seemed happy enough to hang out with us, and at least  _ he _ believes me.”

Dave kisses their forehead again, humming softly. “So what happens now?”

Klaus groans and goes limp in Dave’s arms, whining. “I don’t  _ knooow _ , Davey. He’s just a kid, and he’s gotta be confused, and scared, I mean, one minute he’s getting ornery at lunch, tells Dad to fuck himself, and takes off, and the next he’s twenty years in the future, Dad is dead, and his siblings are all practically strangers. And something’s wrong with Mom, I don’t know what’s going on there, but at this rate, I don’t think I could just leave him with her. Pogo’s so old, too, he’ll probably kick it before the kid’s even legal.”

Dave nods along, just letting Klaus talk it out.

“Allison lives in LA, and she doesn’t even have custody of her  _ own _ kid, I can’t see her taking him in. Diego is off playing hero every night, and Five doesn’t need mixed up with that. And Luther?” Klaus laughs at the thought. “I wouldn’t trust Luther as far as I can throw him. I mean, he’d  _ mean _ well, but he was so defensive of Dad yesterday, I…” Klaus trails off, and Dave waits patiently, letting them gather their thoughts. When they speak again, it’s softer, and their hold has tightened around Dave. “I’m scared he’d put that kid right back into some sort of training, and that, that’s not okay. He deserves a chance at a real childhood, Dave.”

Dave hums, rubbing one hand along Klaus’s back. “What about Vanya?” he prompts.

“Ugh, don’t get me  _ started _ on Vanya. She’d be feeding him everything from that book and, honestly, I have no idea how she’s doing financially  _ or _ mentally. We’re all still just stupid kids, Dave, who’s gonna look after him?”

“Well,” Dave sighs, curling his fingers to give a soft little scratch to the small of Klaus’s back. “Whatever ya’ll decide, I’ve got your back, babe, hundred percent.” Klaus sniffles, and Dave brings his hand up, leaning back a little, to brush his thumb across their cheek. “I will always have your back.”

Klaus’s face is hard to see in the gloom of the dark, just a sliver of light shining through the window from the street lights outside, but Dave can just make out the worried look on it.

“I know you didn’t sign up for all this baggage, Dave--” they start, but Dave cuts them off.

“I did, in fact, sign up for your baggage, Klaus. And while this might be a bag we didn’t notice, I’m still gonna help you carry it, alright?” Klaus sniffles again, and the tears have sprung loose, dripping down their face. Dave kisses them softly, pulling them close and tucking their head into his chest. “It’s gonna be okay. Get some rest, babydoll, and maybe things’ll be a little clearer in the morning.”

“Okay,” Klaus croaks. “I love you.”

“I love you, too,” Dave sighs, rubbing their back, and he holds them until they still, finally drifting off. Dave lays awake a little longer, mind wandering until he, too, succumbs to slumber.


	23. 23

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Don’t worry about it. You’re okay, you made it back to us, that’s all that matters.” Five disagrees, but he doesn’t want to argue about it, or anything, really, with Ben. “And, as much as I hate to admit that Klaus is ever right--”
> 
> “Hey!”
> 
> “--the uniform _has_ to go.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> alright, so this chapter was a bitch.  
> this is the original version that I had outlined, but I'd had an idea about Klaus comforting Five after a nightmare, and that just wasn't working, it was pushing some stuff too fast, so I had to rewrite and save that for ~later~, gotta build up to it.  
> my full wordcount is 47.8k, but there's like, a lot, that has been scrapped/saved for later.

Five's eyes snap open and he shoots upright, a strangled cry escaping his throat. For a moment, he’s still lost, wandering a dense, dark woods, his siblings always just out of reach, but he can hear them, and the crying is getting so loud, but he can’t  _ find them _ \--

Then he realizes he’s not outside, not searching in the dark, all alone, he’s in an unfamiliar living room, illuminated by the peek of sunrise outside. It was a dream. He’s fine, his siblings are fine-- Except for Ben.

But the crying? The crying is real, and it’s loud. Frowning, he looks around, wondering where it’s coming from, who it is. It sounds strange, not like any cry he’s heard from his siblings before, and he’s certainly never heard their parents cry. From his spot on what Klaus had called a couch, but it’s the strangest couch he’s ever seen, he can see three doors.

One has all sorts of locks on it, all fastened, and that must be the way out of the apartment. The second is open, and he can see a sink and toilet inside; the bathroom. The last door is closed, it must be Klaus’s bedroom, and the crying is  _ definitely _ coming from in there.

Nervously, Five draws on his power, popping over to the door to listen. This way, he doesn’t risk making noise as he moves across the floor. He presses his ear to the door, and under the crying, which is finally starting to quiet, he can hear low voices, but can’t catch their words. Then the door is opening, and Five, leaning against it, is unbalanced. With a gasp, he jumps again, further into the room, to keep himself upright. Once inside, he scans around, looking for threats as has been drilled into him his entire life, but only finds Klaus kneeling on one side of the room and a man he doesn’t know staring back at him, hand still on the door.

Five and the stranger stare for a moment, and he has to remind himself that Klaus said other people live here, that this is probably a roommate and not a reason to be on the defensive. Then the man gives him a smile and speaks. “Good morning, Five. Sorry to surprise you, there. Did you sleep alright?”

Five nods, even though that isn’t really true, and looks back at Klaus. “Oh, hey, we didn’t wake you, did we?” she asks, and Five shakes his head, but his attention has shifted to the last person in the room, whom he hadn’t noticed before.

“Is… that a baby?” he asks, surprised. No one had mentioned it yesterday, but he supposes they hadn’t had much of a chance to talk about… anything, really. Klaus nods, fastening the buttons on it’s tiny clothes.

“Mmhm,” she hums, smiling down at it, and, holy shit, Klaus has a  _ baby. _ “You wanna come say hi?”

Five swallows, looking from Klaus to the baby and then back at the man by the door, but he’s already gone into the rest of the apartment. Looking back to his sister, Five nods, approaching slowly. He stops next to Klaus, looking down at the baby, and it is  _ so small, _ he can hardly believe it.

“Were we that small?” he asks softly.

“Mm, yeah, probably,” Klaus replies, lifting the baby into her arms. “Five, this is Grace Kelly. Gracie, this is Uncle Five, can you say hi? Huh? Say hi for Fivey?” The baby, Grace, just babbles nonsense and waves one of her hands in the air. “Yeah, that’s a good girl,” Klaus praises anyway.

Five just watches for a little bit, while Klaus continues baby talking and making dumb faces, until the man, and, God, that must be Klaus’s  _ husband, _ then, comes back with a bottle. Grace catches sight of her dad and squeals happily, alerting Klaus to his return. Klaus grins up at him and takes the bottle with a sweet-toned, “Thank you, Abba.”

Her husband, Abba apparently?, smiles back and combs his fingers through her hair. “I’m gonna go start breakfast,” he says. “How’s waffles sound? Since we have a special guest,” he adds, shooting Five a wink. Five feels his face warm, and he doesn’t know  _ why _ or what the man even  _ means _ by that, exactly, but Klaus hums happily.

Grace is starting to whine, reaching for the bottle, as Abba blows her a kiss before leaving the room again. Klaus looks to Five, who feels strange and awkward, which he hates, and smiles. “You wanna feed her?” she asks, and Five’s eyes widen.

“I-- What?”

“Do you want to feed her?” Klaus repeats, smile widening, and Five  _ knows _ she knows he heard her the first time. But he doesn’t understand why she’s asking. He’s never fed a baby before, never held one, never even seen one so close up! Why would she let him do that? What if he dropped her, or she started choking, or she didn’t like him? His nerves have to be obvious, and he tries to school his face into something more neutral, but she’s already got that spark in her eye she always had when she was about to force him out of his comfort zone.

It’s so familiar it aches a little.

“Come on,” she says, standing up, baby cradled to her chest, and he notices that, while yesterday she looked as flat as their brothers, now she  _ definitely _ has boobs. He doesn’t say anything, more concerned that she’s about to put this baby in his arms, though.

Klaus holds Grace with one arm and hands the bottle to Five, who takes it uncertainly. Then she leads him out to the couch-bed, which appears to have been folded in half, making it look much more couch-like, sits, and invites him to sit between her legs. “I’ll help you out. First time can be scary.” Five bites his lip, looking at the baby, who is definitely getting fussy, face reddening, but she’s watching  _ him _ now, since he has her food.

Five climbs up with his sister and settles in front of her, letting Klaus lean against his back and arrange his arms to hold Grace correctly. “There ya go. You’re a natural,” she says, and Five certainly doesn’t  _ feel _ like one, but once Klaus helps him guide the bottle to Grace’s mouth, she’s happily suckling away, perfectly content in his lap.

Klaus hooks her chin over his shoulder, watching the baby eat, and Five stares down at her, too. He doesn’t think he’s ever fed…  _ anything _ before. Other than himself. They never had pets, and Mom always took care of them when they were sick. It’s… weird, but kinda nice. Grace is warm and heavy and  _ so soft, _ but Klaus’s arm is under his, helping support her, and he feels confident that she won’t let him mess it up.

Soon, the bottle is empty, but Grace whines, kicking her feet a little. “What’s wrong?” he asks, looking at Klaus.

“Oh, she’s just still hungry. We’re weaning her off the formula, but she can have a waffle, then she’ll feel better.”

“Babies can eat waffles?”

“Well, not a  _ whole _ waffle, and she can’t have the good stuff on top, and I think we’ll probably get her to eat some soft fruit, too. Huh? How’s that sound, Gray Kay? Huh? You want some nanas? Yeah? I bet Abba will share with you if you ask niiiiicelyyyy.”

Grace smiles up at her mom, who continues to coo over Five’s shoulder until Abba announces that breakfast is served. Klaus carefully extracts the baby from Five’s arms and lets him get up first. The kitchen is small, the whole  _ place _ is small, he’s pretty sure it would fit in the library at home without much trouble, but it’s clearly enough for the three of them.

Abba takes Grace from Klaus, settling her into a highchair, and Klaus points Five to one of the chairs. “You can take Ben’s seat, he doesn’t need it.” Five glances around, certain Ben is somewhere nearby, but unsure just  _ where. _ He kinda feels bad, taking Ben’s seat, but Klaus has a point, he doesn’t really need it, he doesn’t have to eat anymore.

Sitting down, Five looks at the plate, which has two waffles on it, and there are a few options for spreads set out: butter, strawberry jam, peanut butter, cream cheese, and a bottle of syrup. None of it is as fancy as Mom used to make, but it doesn’t look bad, and then Klaus sets a glass of milk in front of him, which he frowns at.

“You know I don’t like milk,” he pouts, but Klaus just shakes her head.

“One glass, just for me? It’s important for growing boys.”

Five groans, but Klaus  _ was _ giving him waffles on top of the donuts last night. “Just. One.”

“That’s all I ask,” Klaus says, and she smiles at him, overly-sweet. Five picks it up and gulps down half of it, wrinkling his nose unhappily.

“Five, would you like a piece of fruit?” Abba asks from the counter, where he’s slicing a banana.

“No, thank you,” Five says. He’s happy enough with the jam, which he pulls to himself, along with the cream cheese. He busies himself topping his waffles, while Klaus cuts one into  _ very _ small pieces, only the softest of which are deposited in front of Grace, along with about half of Abba’s banana slices, which were further cut in half. Five eats, content enough to listen to Klaus chatter away enough for all of them, and it’s weird, because Dad always demanded silence at the table.

When the plates are clean, and Klaus has made sure Five finished his milk, she announces that they’re going shopping before heading back to the house. “Shopping for  _ what?” _ Five asks.

“Clothes, little man. All you’ve got is that uniform, and I’m not letting you out in public in it again.”

“What’s wrong with it?” Five asks. He’s never worn anything different, and it seems silly to buy something new when he’s going to figure out how to go back as soon as he can. Though… Klaus seems happy, even if their siblings are all mad at her. He wouldn’t want to mess up the family she has now.

But Klaus could still find him, right? Five just needed to know when and where they met, make sure Klaus was there, and it’d be fine.

Klaus just raises her eyebrow at him. “Everything, Five. Not only are they hideous, they are itchy and uncomfortable and they made us all look like Daddy’s little drones, and I won’t have it in my home.”

Five sighs and asks, “What’s Ben say?”

“Ben agrees with me.”

“ _ I _ wanna ask Ben.”

Klaus rolls her eyes, and for a second Five thinks she’s going to ignore him, but then her hands start to glow and suddenly he’s  _ there. _ And Five knew he was, that Klaus wouldn’t lie to him about that, but his heart still stutters when he finally sees him. Grace squeals at his appearance, but Ben’s attention is on him.

Five’s sure his face lights up excitedly, which is embarrassing, but Ben’s the only one he hasn’t seen yet, and there had been a tiny, dark bit of worry in the pit of his stomach that the others might be right. “Ben!”

“Hey, small fry,” Ben chuckles. “I’ve missed you.”

“I’m sorry,” he blurts out, because maybe if he’d been there he could have helped, could have saved Ben, but Ben just shakes his head.

“Don’t worry about it. You’re okay, you made it back to us, that’s all that matters.” Five disagrees, but he doesn’t want to argue about it, or anything, really, with Ben. “And, as much as I hate to admit that Klaus is ever right--”

“Hey!”

“--the uniform  _ has _ to go.”

“Well… Alright, fine. Since  _ Ben _ says so,” Five concedes.

“Great, well, let’s find you something to wear to the store,” Klaus says, putting one glowing hand on Five’s shoulder as Grace starts to whine again. “Uncle Ben, you’d better give the baby some attention before she thinks you’ve forgotten all about her.” Ben turns to her, grinning.

“Oh, I could never forget about  _ you!” _ he exclaims, voice doing the same silly thing Klaus’s did when talking to her. Grownups are  _ weird _ about babies.

Klaus leads Five to the bedroom, and together they dig through the clothes, eventually finding something suitable, and Five shuffles off to the bathroom to change. Five is dressed first and cautiously joins Ben playing with Grace, Abba having disappeared in the meantime, until Klaus and Abba come out of the bedroom together. They’re both dressed, now, and Klaus’s chest is flat again, which is weird and confusing and  _ how did she even do that? _

She’s wearing a see-through top, covered in stars, and a pair of tight jeans. Her hair was unbraided when they got up, probably taken down before bed, and now it’s hanging in loose curls, instead. He’s  _ pretty _ sure she’s wearing lipstick, but it looks nice.

“Alright, squirt, ready to head out?” she asked.

Five nods, glancing to Abba, who is dressed more casually in loose jeans and a t-shirt.

“Please tell me you’re not driving your Dad’s car again,” Abba says, pulling Klaus to his side with an arm around her waist.

“Well if I don’t drive it  _ back _ then I’ve stolen it instead of  _ borrowing, _ dear,” she replies, grinning at him.

Abba groans, leaning against her. “Be  _ careful _ , then. I do not need a heart-stopping phone call today, alright?”

“It’ll be  _ fiiiine,” _ Klaus insists, and their faces are getting really close together, their noses are practically touching. “Ben will keep an eye out for ghosts  _ and _ the fuzz.”

Abba sighs, tipping their foreheads together. “Alright, then. But drive safe.”

“Always,” Klaus says, and then she kisses him, and Five glances at Ben.

“Are grownups always like this?” he whispers.

“Just the gross ones,” Ben replies.

Then Klaus is pulling away from him and making her way to Grace, saying goodbye in that baby talk voice again. Grace giggles and slaps her hands around, which has Klaus making the weirdest noises in return, and Five looks at Ben again, but he’s  _ also _ making dumb, fake-sad faces.

Five hopes he isn’t this weird when he grows up.


	24. 24

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Wait, you want me to… To change my clothes _here?_ In _public?_ ” Five squeaks, obviously scandalized by the thought.
> 
> “Well, yeah, how do we know they fit, otherwise?” Klaus asks.
> 
> “But… What if someone _sees?_ "
> 
> “The doors lock, Five, you’ll be fine,” Ben promises.
> 
> “I have to try on _everything?_ "
> 
> “Just one of each,” Klaus compromises.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> holy shit, guys, I am 204 words from the 50k goal, an entire week early!  
> I might even get the published version all the way to 50 by the end of the month? like, I'm actually ahead there, too.  
> this feels crazy, honestly.  
> anyway, here's Ben with shopping shenanigans!  
> the conversation over pants went in a different direction than I thought, but this is fine.  
> I gotta tell you guys, though, idk when/how to bring the Abba thing to fruition bc like, it came to me out of nowhere when Klaus first said it in the last chapter with no plan for the follow through.  
> AND THANK YOU ALL FOR THE COMMENTS, SERIOUSLY, I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH

Piling into the car again, Klaus insists Five buckles before he starts it, and he lets Ben go invisible again, needing to put his attention fully on the road. About halfway there, apparently bored of watching out the window, Five leans forward, straining against the seatbelt, and asks, “Where are we going?”

“Sit back and I’ll tell you,” Klaus replies, glancing briefly into the rearview mirror, clenching his fists a little tighter on the wheel. His knuckles were already turning white from his grip, and Ben imagines they’ll be sore by the time they get back to the house.

Five flops back against the seat with a huff, crossing his arms, and repeats his question.

“There’s a thrift shop that specializes in kids’ clothes,” Klaus says. “We got a great deal on about a hundred onesies for Gracie there, we should be able to find you something decent.”

“She does not have a hundred,” Five says doubtfully.

“Well, not anymore, she grows like a weed!” Klaus laughs, eyes glued to the street. Five hums, and Ben can just picture his narrowed eyes, debating how serious Klaus is, but Ben is watching the road, too.

After another minute or so, Five speaks up again. “What’s a thrift store?”

Ben snorts, shaking his head. They had been raised like shit, but only with the best, most expensive things. This would be eye-opening for the kid.

“A magical place, where you can get any number of things for practically pennies,” Klaus explains. “And they’re mostly hardly used!”

“Used?” Five repeats. “Wait, we’re buying clothes that someone _else_ wore?”

“Yeah! I’d take you to Gimbels, but I have rent to pay and a baby to feed, sooooo…”

Five lets it go, back to watching the buildings pass by, until they’re pulling into a space right outside the store. “Alright, let’s go find you some new duds, Five-O!”

“Don’t say ‘duds’, Klaus, you sound like an old man,” Ben grouses.

“Good!” Klaus laughs, drawing on his powers once more. Five’s face brightens again when he sees Ben reappear.

Twenty minutes later, Klaus has offered Five about ten different hideous t-shirts, Ben has pointed out a couple of sweaters that Five seemed to at least consider, and Five has finally found something that he actually likes. Unfortunately, Klaus feels that getting _more_ button-ups is counterproductive, but he relents since Five at least picked out _colored_ shirts.

“Okay, okay, fine, but you have to get some other styles, too,” he says, and Five accepts the next sweater Ben finds.

After a while, the cart is half-full, and Klaus shows Five to the changing rooms.

“Wait, you want me to… To change my clothes _here?_ In _public?”_ Five squeaks, obviously scandalized by the thought.

“Well, yeah, how do we know they fit, otherwise?” Klaus asks.

“But… What if someone _sees?_ ”

“The doors lock, Five, you’ll be fine,” Ben promises.

“I have to try on _everything?_ ”

“Just one of each,” Klaus compromises. “Once we know which sizes fit, we can weed out the wrong ones.” Five is clearly less than impressed by the idea, but he does as he’s asked, letting Klaus load up his arms with shirts. “Alright, you go nuts in there, we’ll be right here if you need anything.” Five rolls his eyes and walks into a changing room. After about half an hour, they’ve figured out the right sizes, even though Five complains that nothing really fits _right._

“That’s because we’re shopping off the rack,” Ben explains. “And Dad always had stuff tailored to fit perfectly.”

“You get used to it,” Klaus adds, shrugging as he digs out the items that are the wrong size and leaves them on the restock shelf nearby. “Now for pants! Because, as cute as you are in those, the safety pin won’t hold my pants on your waist forever.”

Five sighs, clearly getting tired of the process, but neither Ben nor Klaus is letting him leave without enough proper clothes. They start through the racks again, but after the third pair that Klaus offers, and honestly, he has to be deliberately picking the _worst_ things, Five is visibly getting irritated.

“Alright, how about you two keep looking, and I’ll go check out the coats, huh? You could use something to keep warm,” Klaus offers.

“If you bring back something with another hideous pattern,” Five starts, and Klaus holds up his hands.

“No, no, I promise, honestly, I’m not completely fashionblind.”

“You sure about that?” Ben asks with a little smirk. “I’ve seen some of the stuff you used to wear.”

“Oh, you mean when I did my shopping out of dumpsters? Yes, Ben, sometimes the only option _is_ literal garbage, alright? I’ve gotten much better these days!”

“Whatever you say,” Ben laughs, because, really, that was just an excuse. Ben had watched Klaus choose God-awful prints over perfectly normal items more than once, no matter where he was shopping.

Klaus waves his hand, GOODBYE, and heads to the wall of coats that look about Five’s size, and Ben turns back to Five, who’s watching Klaus go. Ben can’t put his hand on his shoulder, so he clears his throat instead, not that there’s actually anything to clear, considering he doesn’t _actually_ have a throat anymore.

“So. How about some corduroys?” he suggests when Five looks up. Five lifts one eyebrow.

“What?”

Ben grins. “I’ll show you.”

Another ten minutes later, Five is digging through a rack, but he seems distracted. “Hey. What’s goin’ on in that head of yours?” Ben asks. Five sighs, dropping his hands from the clothes, and looks up at Ben.

“Did Klaus really… Used to take clothes out of dumpsters?” he asks, a frown on his face, and Ben feels something heavy in his chest as he remembers that Five has no context for a joke like that. Any of the others would have rolled their eyes or laughed, because _of course_ Klaus pulled his clothes from the trash. But to Five, that must sound horrifying.

“Uh… Yeah, bud, he… Klaus has been through some pretty hard times,” he admits, because he can’t _lie,_ and he doesn’t think Klaus would want him to. He’s never exactly been shy about or ashamed of the things he’s had to do to survive. But Ben decides not to volunteer that Klaus would also _eat_ out of the trash when things got too bad.

Five looks back in Klaus’s direction, scanning the wall for a moment until he finds him again. “But it’s better now?”

“Yeah,” Ben says. “It’s better now. He’s got a place to stay, and someone to go home to.”

“He?” Five asks, turning to Ben again.

“Oh, uhhhh…” Ben’s not sure he should field this question, but Five is asking so _innocently,_ he can at least try. “Klaus doesn’t use ‘she’ anymore. He likes ‘he’ better. Or ‘they’.”

Five’s eyebrows pinch together for a moment. “But they isn’t… That’s for more than one person.”

Ben sighs. “They can be singular, but you should really ask Klaus about it.”

Five hums, turning back to the clothes. Ben thinks that’s it, at least for now, since he knows the gears in Five’s mind must be spinning, but then he asks, “Is that why her, or, _his_ boobs disappeared after breakfast?”

Ben snorts, and Five turns around, glaring a little. “Sorry, sorry, uh, y-yeah? Um, but that is _definitely_ a Klaus question, because I really don’t get the dysphoria and would probably just confuse you more.”

Five keeps his eyes narrowed for a moment longer, and then spins back to the rack once more, grabbing a pair of pants. “Okay.”

“Okay?”

Five nods, holding the pants up to himself, checking the length like they had been doing. They go back to picking out pants, Five staying quiet, and Ben lets him chew on his thoughts for a while.

Eventually, Five has enough to go try them on again, and Ben leads him back to the changing rooms. Klaus has wandered over to the baby clothes, a couple of coats in hand, and Gracie will certainly have a new outfit by the time they leave, too.

When Five comes out, he glances around, maybe looking for Klaus, but he’s clear on the other side of the store and Five isn’t looking that far. “Ben?”

“Yeah, kiddo?” he replies. But Five doesn’t answer, eyes still trailing the area.

“Ben?” he says again, a little louder.

Ben turns fully towards him, and Five’s eyes move right over him as he calls his name again. “Oh, shit,” Ben hisses, twisting to look for Klaus. And there he is, leaning against a rack and breathing a little too hard, hands no longer glowing.

“Klaus?” Five calls, louder and more anxious than before, gaze going to the coats, but Klaus isn’t _there_ anymore.

“Over there,” Ben says, trying to will Five to understand, but the kid just looks nervous, eyes darting around.

“Klaus?!” And that time he’s yelling, which at least gets their sibling’s attention.

Klaus stands up straight, turning towards them, and calls back, “Over here, Five.” Five uses his powers to jump to Klaus’s side, clutching the pants he’d picked out in his arms, and Ben follows. “Hey, sorry, didn’t mean to worry ya. You okay?”

Five nods, blinking quickly. “I… Ben’s gone,” he murmurs.

“Yeah, my bad, I guess I’m still kinda drained from yesterday,” Klaus explains. “He’s right here, he wouldn’t leave you alone.”

Ben sends Klaus a disapproving look, because _seriously?_ He couldn’t keep track of his power levels well enough to _not_ freak Five out?

“Yeah, yeah, you can put the stink eye away, Ben,” Klaus huffs. Then he turns to Five and tries to redirect his attention. “You find some pants?” Five nods, holding them out, and Klaus takes them, clicking his tongue in approval. “Not bad. I found a couple coats that should fit. Which one do you like?”

Five looks at them, but he doesn’t seem very enthusiastic about it. He settles on the red one, which is long and has a sash around the middle, definitely not what Ben would have thought to be his style, but he might just be picking at random so they can leave. He seems pretty much done with the shopping adventure.

“Alright, then,” Klaus says, ruffling Five’s hair, and the boy glares up at him, popping a couple of feet away. Klaus laughs and heads for the register, beckoning him along. “Anything else you want before we go?”

“No,” Five says, catching up.

“You sure?”

“ _Yes._ ”

“Alrighty,” Klaus says, and starts piling the clothes onto the counter when they get there. Ben notices that Klaus didn’t actually pick anything out for Gracie, probably getting hit with some pretty intense fatigue from overworking himself. He passes the coat to Five, who pulls it on, the hem nearly trailing along the floor. “You’ll grow into it,” Klaus promises, and helps tie the sash while Five does the buttons. “You look dashing, bud. Total lady-killer.”

“What?” Five asks, face screwed up in confusion, but at least he doesn’t look as scared as he had for that moment when he thought they had disappeared on him.

Instead of answering, Klaus just _boops_ his nose with a laugh and leads him back to the car. “You feeling ready for lunch?” he asks. “Shopping always makes me starving, and we were in there a bit longer than I realized.”

Looking up at the sky, which is grey with late-winter clouds, Ben sees that the sun is pretty high. It must be close to noon. “You should get him pizza,” Ben says.

“Ooh, good call, Ben,” Klaus says as Five fastens his belt, Klaus depositing the bags in the seat beside him. “How’s pizza sound? We can get whatever you want on it.”

“Pizza?” Five asks, perking up. Pizza was a special treat Mom only made on occasion, and Five has definitely never had a greasy chain pie.

“Yeah. You like pineapple, right? Which, to each their own, but like, ew. Fruit does not belong with tomato sauce.”

“Tomato _is_ fruit,” Five retorts, and Klaus shakes his head.

“I suppose you think ketchup is a smoothie, then?”

“What? No, ew, why would you say that?”

Ben laughs so hard that, if he had a gut to bust, he would have.


	25. 25

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “We come bearing food!” Klaus shouts as the door swings shut with a bit of a bang.
> 
> A second later, one of Diego’s knives comes whizzing past their head, nearly nicking their ear, before lodging itself into the doorframe. “Damn! If I wanted a new piercing, I’d _ask,_ Di!”
> 
> “Where the _fuck_ have you been?” Diego growls, storming down the stairs. “We have been searching _everywhere._ ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The full word count is 51.6k! I can't believe how much I've written or how fast!  
> Your comments all mean so much to me, even if I don't reply, and I've read every single one!!

Klaus buys two extra-large pizzas to take back to the Academy, Five and Ben both ganging up on them, insisting it was time to head back, and reminding them that there was, basically, nothing edible there. They let Five pick the toppings, ending up with one half-pepper-half-pineapple and one half-pepperoni-half-ham. It ought to satisfy their siblings, and if it didn’t, then tough shit, Klaus would just eat theirs, then. They haven’t had pork in like two years, not that Dave had asked them to, but it was just easier not to keep it around, and the meat was smelling _so good._

Klaus puts the boxes in the back with Five, so Ben doesn’t have to sit on top of them, and tasks their littlest brother with keeping them from spilling. Once they’re all settled, Klaus turns around to look at Five again. “Okay. So before we get there, uh, nobody knows… anything about my life, basically.”

“Don’t ask him to lie for you,” Ben scolds, folding his arms judgmentally.

“I’m not asking him to _lie,_ just, maybe, not bring it up,” Klaus says, perhaps a touch defensively. But Dave and Grace are not worth risking, not with the others.

“Why not?” Five asks, glancing towards Ben and then back to Klaus.

“Well, I haven’t exactly seen any of them in _at least_ a year, before yesterday, and they’ve all got a pretty bad opinion of me these days.”

Five frowns, letting out a little huff of irritation. “But _why?_ Everybody was so mad yesterday, why don’t you guys like each other anymore?”

“Oh, Five,” Klaus sighs. “We haven’t liked each other for a long time. It’s just… Look, we all missed you, and we all love you, okay? But some of the shit that went down after you left was pretty fucked up, it left us pretty fucked up, and, as my therapist would say, we all take our trauma out on each other.”

“What _happened?”_ Five presses.

Klaus sighs again and rubs one cheek, unsure how to explain that their Dad had been abusing them all since day one, even if Luther still didn’t think so. How aware was Five of how bad things had been? Klaus can’t remember ever thinking Dad _loved_ any of them, but they know that isn’t true for some of the others, and it’s been so long since they were Five’s age, but the kid _should_ know how bad things were with Reginald. He had to have his own trauma rattling around in there, and now that he’d gotten out, gotten to a place and time where Dad couldn’t hurt him anymore, Klaus was going to make sure that he got a chance to deal with whatever damage there was and _heal_. “Dad, mostly,” they finally say. “Demanded too much from kids that could never make him happy.”

“But he’s gone now,” Five points out.

“Bud, we all happened to each other, too. Between Dad’s manipulations and our own stupid decisions, we’re just one big trainwreck.”

“So you didn’t even tell them you got married? Because of _Dad?”_

Klaus blinks, looking up at Five, and then over at Ben, who started snickering but offers no assistance. “Oh, god, no, I am _not_ married,” they rush to clarify, turning back to Five.

“But… You have a baby,” he says, like that means _anything._

“Five, marriage is not a prerequisite for having a baby,” Klaus laughs out breathlessly. Shit, they could not afford to start thinking about marrying Dave right now, there were too many other, more important things going on.

“It’s… not?”

“Oh, kiddo,” Ben chuckles, shaking his head.

“Bud, we will have the birds and the bees talk later, but _no,_ it’s not. None of us were born to wedded couples, were we?”

“But we were… different,” Five says, shrugging.

“That’s true, but trust me, _lots_ of people have babies without being married.” Five gives Klaus that little constipated look, where he furrows his brow and narrows his eyes, like Klaus might be fucking with him but he can’t figure out _why._ “Look, the point is, no one knows about Gracie, and I’d like to keep it that way.”

“But _why?”_

Klaus closes their eyes, leaning their forehead against the headrest for a moment before lifting it again to look him in the eyes. “Because they might try to take her from us. Because they don’t _know_ me anymore, and they won’t be willing to listen. They’ll think I’m dangerous and too irresponsible to take care of her.”

“That’s stupid!” Five huffs.

“Well, that’s life,” Klaus replies, nodding.

“You really think they’d take her?” Ben asks, and Klaus turns to him, eyebrow raised.

“Wouldn’t you? If the last time you saw me I was shooting up in alleyways?”

Ben doesn’t have an answer to that, which says more than enough.

The three of them sit in a long silence, until Klaus takes a deep breath and lets it out with a clap of their hands. “Alright! If there aren’t any questions, let's head over there before the pizzas get cold, huh?”

Five doesn’t say anything else, and neither does Ben, so Klaus turns to the front and starts the car again. Half an hour later, they’re walking in the door, car parked back in the garage. “We come bearing food!” Klaus shouts as the door swings shut with a bit of a bang.

A second later, one of Diego’s knives comes whizzing by their head, nearly nicking their ear, before lodging itself into the doorframe. “Damn! If I wanted a new piercing, I’d _ask,_ Di!”

“Where the _fuck_ have you been?” Diego growls, storming down the stairs. “We have been searching _everywhere.”_

“Christ, where do you think? We went to get food, I _literally_ invited you last night.”

“That was sixteen hours ago!” Diego rages. He stomps up to them, grabbing Five by the shoulders, and starts aggressively checking him for injuries.

“Holy shit, Diego,” Five protests, jerking out of Diego’s hold to put Klaus between them. “I’m _fine.”_

Diego stares at them for a moment, another knife in hand, which he uses to gesture at Klaus as Luther lumbers in as well.

“Oh, thank God,” their largest brother sighs. “Where the hell did you take him?”

“For donuts, alright? Now, if you assholes want any pizza, you’ll stop waving that thing in my face!”

Diego lowers the knife, but he’s still glaring at Klaus.

Klaus puts an arm around Five’s shoulders and starts for the kitchen, ignoring the holes Numbers One and Two are drilling into their back.

“I told you they’d freak out,” Ben says, following along. Klaus doesn’t reply, just shrugging like they had when Ben said it the first time. Ben probably rolls his eyes, but Klaus’s attention has been caught by Allison, who is on the phone in the hall.

“It’s _one_ session! Patrick, it was my father’s funeral, and now one of my brothers has apparently kidnapped another. I will be there as soon as I can, but I’m pretty sure the court would recognize this as extenuating circumstances.”

Klaus slows their footsteps, and Five follows suit, glancing up at them.

“Is Claire there?” she asks, voice softening. “I, _yes,_ I’d like to talk to my daughter, if that’s okay with you.”

Five looks to Allison and then back at Klaus, whispering, “She has a baby, too?”

Klaus nods, but their tongue seems to stick to the roof of their mouth, so they don’t say anything about her. Not like they know much, anyway, considering Allison never let them meet her.

“No-- _Patrick,”_ Allison says, voice cracking, and now Klaus feels kind of bad for pausing to listen in, but they hadn’t wanted to walk past and interrupt. After another second, she hangs up, looking heartbroken, and _fuck,_ if Dave ever had reason to take Grace from them, it’d probably kill Klaus, too.

Five glances between his siblings again, and then approaches Allison, reaching out to touch her wrist. She jumps, startled, and, seeing who it is, wraps him into a tight hug. “Oh my God, we were so worried,” she says. Klaus continues on to the kitchen, leaving Five to comfort her, and Ben stays behind, just watching them.

Klaus drops the pizzas on the table and opens the fridge, hoping to find something to drink, but the iced tea seems to have been finished, and the milk is definitely out of date. Sighing, they throw it out and start pulling plates to pile on the table. They sit heavily and rub their eyes, pretending that they aren’t fucking up their mascara, and just stay there for a moment, head tipped back and eyes closed.

Good to know she thought they kidnapped Five. Not like she was the one that left them to watch him or anything.


	26. 26

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Pogo, do we have a will around here or what?” Diego asks.
> 
> Pogo sighs, nodding slowly. “There is one,” he says, looking around at them all. “However, it appears to have gone missing, along with a number of other important papers.” His eyes land on Klaus, and suddenly the entire table turns to him.
> 
> “What? Why would I take _paperwork?”_ he asks defensively.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> today we have the sibs's morning at the house, and then V picks up where we left off!  
> this was tough to get started, I wasn't sure what, exactly, I was writing today. I had a feeling I was doing the sibs, but I didn't know where to start. I tried Allison first, but a couple paragraphs in I realized I needed in Luther's head right then, so I switched, and then it came along fairly easily.  
> I almost stopped about halfway through Allison's POV, unsure how to get Vanya in there, but her section would have only been about 400 and it didn't feel quite right, so I went back and figured it out.  
> This chapter is probably the longest one so far, with 4 POVs.

Luther’s morning starts like every morning has for… about as long as he can remember. He wakes up to his alarm and drags himself from his bed with a groan. He’s outgrown his childhood room, as evidenced by the busted model plane he’d hit the day before while dancing, as well as the way he feels cramped in his old bed.

He’d treated the cut as well as he could, and the bandage is a little sloppy, but it gets the job done. He had watched both Vanya and Diego leave, one by cab, the other speeding off in his own car, the night before, and he’d heard a third engine not long after, which he could only assume was Klaus, as he knew Allison was staying in the house and Five had nowhere to go.

Allison must have kept him entertained and gotten him to bed, as neither of them had approached him during the night. And that’s good, Allison was the only one of them that had kids, she’d know what to do with him, not that Five would probably appreciate the mothering. Mom might have been a better option, but she had been strange yesterday, and Luther has a feeling something might be wrong. Diego obviously thought she was fine, and that’s, honestly, just more reason for Luther to think she isn’t. His brother had always been a Momma’s Boy, and he wouldn’t hear of a single bad thing uttered about her.

At this point, however, he isn’t sure what to do with himself. He’s had a strict routine for years, but now that he’s on Earth again, Luther feels like he’s floating, untethered. So, he turns to the only person around that he can always count on. Allison.

She’s in her bedroom, which is just down the hall from his own, and he knocks at the door frame, giving a nervous little wave when she looks up. She smiles when she sees him, which is encouraging, and he takes a step inside, having to duck his head an inch or so to get through.

Luther has always been tall, but ever since the last mission he was sent on, when he woke up after nearly dying, alone and _different,_ he’s really noticed the way he towers over everything and everyone. It was better, on the moon, where there was only him. Where even the Earth looked small in comparison, where he always wore long, heavy clothes, and he could convince himself that he hadn’t changed all that much. But here, in his sister’s room, he feels massive and intrusive, and he wonders why she lets him in at all.

After a momentary pause, where they just look at each other, and Luther can’t help wondering what, exactly, she sees, he clears his throat and admits to her that he feels a little lost without the routine anymore. Allison nods in agreement with a soft laugh.

Luther shifts his weight slightly, overly aware of just how much space he takes up.

“You must be eager to get back to Claire, huh?” he prompts, hoping to get her talking. He never had the chance to meet Claire, and he’s been gone so long, he knows practically nothing about her.

“I never thought I could miss someone so much. Like I might actually die without her,” she says, sighing softly. “But there’s still a lot to deal with before I can see her. I’ve already changed my flight, we need to figure out what to do with Five, and Dad’s will, wherever it might be hidden.”

Luther hums, nodding, and takes an uneasy seat on the bed beside her. His huge frame completely dwarfs her, and the furniture, and he knows the bed will hold, his did, but he still tries to avoid putting his full weight on it too quickly. He winces as the springs still creak in protest.

Allison sighs again and leans into him, resting her head against his shoulder. Luther freezes in place, eyes wide in surprise. He hasn’t had such intimate contact with anyone since she had left, and it feels good, nice, but he can’t believe she’s so comfortable touching him like this.

“You know, I’d really like you to meet her some day,” she says, looking down at her hands in her lap.

“R-really?”

“Well, yeah, of course,” Allison says, sitting up again to look at him.

“Does she even know about me?”

“Why wouldn’t she?” Allison laughs. “I used to tell her stories all the time.”

“I just thought…” Luther hesitates for a moment, remembering how she had left with hardly a goodbye. None of his siblings had given any indication that they were leaving until they were already gone, except for Diego, who made his exit loud and clear, but kept his plan tight under wraps until that exact moment. Allison had left a note on his door, leaving in the middle of the night. She said she had to, that if she said goodbye in person, she wouldn’t be able to leave, but she couldn’t stay any longer. “It just seemed like you wanted to forget all about this place.”

“This _place,_ sure, but not _you._ ” Luther’s chest feels warm at her words, a happiness swelling up inside. “I know she would love to meet you, you’re like her personal superhero, y’know?”

“Really?” he asks, smiling.

“Yeah. I’d read her books about the moon and tell her that you were up there, keeping us all safe. Maybe once I can see her, you could come visit.”

Luther shrugs. “I’d love that,” he says. “But Dad’s monocle is still missing, and I can’t just forget about that.”

“Luther, Dad died because his heart gave out,” she says, eyes pleading. “Don’t make this into a mission.”

“Is that what you think?” he asks, shoulders hunching slightly, but even the smallest movement is incredibly obvious on his frame.

“I think there’s a reason you never left,” she says, laying her hand over his.

Luther can feel his heart beating harder as a mix of emotions flood through him. Frustration that she doesn’t think this is a serious issue. Affection at the soft touch. Revulsion at the way his hands are so massive in comparison to hers. Shame that he can’t even explain.

Swallowing, he pulls his hand back and stands. “I’m, uh, gonna go see if there’s anything to eat downstairs,” he mutters, shuffling out of her room without looking back, but he can feel her eyes on his back as he walks away.

~~~

Diego arrives at the house around ten o’clock, having caught a few hours of sleep at the gym after a night of crime fighting and evidence tampering. He finds Luther in the kitchen, cleaning up what looks like the last of breakfast, shoving wrappers into a delivery bag. “Gettin’ your daily protein in?” he asks, seeing that Luther must have eaten a dozen egg sandwiches. The guy had always eaten more than the rest of them, between his power needing the extra calories and his general larger-than-average build, so Diego imagines he needs even more, now that he’s close to triple Five’s size.

Luther looks up, eyes narrowed, but just shrugs, throwing the bag in the trash. “How was your night?” he asks. “Terrify any of the locals?”

“I am a local, jackass. And _no,_ I was out terrifying the ugly underbelly of the city,” Diego snarks. “Where is everybody?”

“Allison is still upstairs, I think,” Luther says. “And I assume Five’s still in bed.”

“What about Klaus?”

Luther shrugs again. “I think she left a little while after you.”

“Mm. Sounds about right,” Diego nods, rolling his eyes.

They stand in silence for a moment, and Diego is surprised they’ve gone so long without starting a fight about something or other. They’ve always been at each other’s throats, even when they were kids, Luther always acting like just because he was Number One that meant he was in charge, while Diego always felt like he was lagging behind, only ever second best, no matter what he did.

Finally, Luther sighed, looking away and lifting one giant hand to scratch at the back of his head. “Look, I guess you were… probably right. Maybe I was jumping to conclusions, but I really wasn’t trying to accuse anyone yet. I just thought…” Luther drops his hand, and nearly takes out a chair in the process. He scrambles to catch it, and Diego snickers as Luther’s face heats up. “Something’s not right about this, that’s all I was trying to say,” he finishes, staring hard at the chair, and Diego can hear the wood creak under his grip.

“Alright, whatever, let the poor chair go before you actually crack it.” Luther’s hand snaps open and he pulls it to his side. “I was working that night, by the way, and Allison wasn’t even in town. And if you think _Vanya_ could do it, you’re crazier than I thought.”

“I…” Luther sighs once more. “That’s what Allison said, too. You guys are right. But something is _definitely_ fishy, I mean, why would someone take his monocle?”

“Man, it’s just a stupid monocle, _who cares?”_ Diego groans, irritation rising that he won’t just let it go.

“I don’t know, but why would it be missing? He _always_ had it with him.”

“Maybe Mom or Pogo has it,” Allison says, walking into the room. She glances at Diego, eyebrow lifted slightly, and says, “Good to see you didn’t get your ass shot.”

“Thanks, sis,” Diego says with a sarcastic smile. “Any idea when Vanya’s coming back? I’d like to get this over with so I can go back to my life.”

“No, but I’ll give her a call. I haven’t seen Klaus or Five, one of you want to get them up?”

“Yeah, sure,” Diego agrees. The sooner this is over, the sooner he can get back to his police scanner and bothering Eudora.

“I’m pretty sure Klaus left last night,” Luther pipes up.

“Ugh, of _course_ he did,” Allison huffs, rolling her eyes. “I hope he at least fed Five first.”

“Wait, you left _Klaus_ in charge?” Diego snaps.

“I had calls to make, I should already be on a plane heading home. Klaus said he could handle it.”

Diego rolls his eyes so hard they almost fall out. “If there’s a fucking hair out of place on the kid…” he grumbles, letting the threat trail off as he starts for the stairs. Five isn’t a baby, if Klaus really did just take off, he could take care of himself for the night, but it just goes to show how irresponsible Klaus really is.

Diego passes Klaus’s room first and pauses to look in, finding it mostly undisturbed, just Allison’s skirt Klaus had stolen the day before in a pile on the floor. 

He continues down to Five’s room and knocks sharply. There’s no response, so he knocks again and calls out, “Five! Rise and shine, bro!” After another moment, Diego swings the door open, letting it hit the desk sitting against the wall.

He stills, staring in. The place doesn’t look like it’s been touched since Five disappeared. There’s a heavy layer of dust on everything, and the bed is still made, his stupid stuffed dog even tucked into the covers.

“Son of a _bitch._ ”

~~~

The next two hours are filled by the three of them searching the house from top to bottom, even though they all fear it’s entirely fruitless. If Five and Klaus hadn’t slept in their rooms, where else could they be? Luther insists he heard a third car leave, and Allison finds that Dad’s car is, indeed, missing. Vanya promises to be there as soon as she can, but the bus is always slow this time of day and she hadn’t even gotten dressed yet when Allison called.

If they don’t manage to find Five before she shows up, they’re going to call Diego’s lady friend at the police station to report the car stolen and Five missing. Eventually, the phone rings, and Diego rushes to answer, stuttering out an anxious, “H-h-hel-llo?” He’s more worked up than Allison had first realized.

It’s Patrick on the phone, however, and he hands it off to her before stalking off to search the house again. Patrick is pissed, demanding to know why her therapist had called his lawyer to let them know she’d missed an appointment, and it’s just so stupid. It was _one fucking session,_ and she says as much after nearly ten minutes of arguing, reminding him that she was at her father’s funeral. “And now one of my brothers has apparently kidnapped another. I will be there as soon as I can, but I’m pretty sure the court would recognize this as extenuating circumstances!”

She takes a deep breath and makes an attempt to salvage this. “Is Claire there?”

“That’s none of your business,” Patrick says, cold and unsympathetic. “Why does it matter?”

“I’d like to talk to my daughter, if that’s okay with you,” she says, voice hardening. How could he keep them apart like this? Claire needs her, and she needs Claire, like she needs to _breathe._ Patrick scoffs and tells her to try again when she’s actually seen her therapist. “No-- _Patrick,”_ she gasps, but the dial tone is all that she gets in reply.

She closes her eyes, leaning her forehead against the wall, and hangs up, arm moving sluggishly as she forces it up. She’s about to burst into tears when a hand touches her wrist. She gasps, looking up, and it’s _Five._

“Oh my God, we were so worried,” she says, gathering him into her arms, and hopes he thinks her tears are of relief and not grief. She notices Klaus shuffle past, but she ignores him for now, more concerned with making sure Five is alright. She holds him for a long moment, maybe enjoying how small he is, not much taller than Claire, and it helps, but it’s not the same as hugging her daughter.

After a couple of minutes, Five squirms a bit, and she reluctantly lets him go. He had never been big on this sort of affection, so she should consider herself lucky to have gotten to hug him at all. “Are you okay?” she asks, looking him over, and he’s wearing a coat she’s never seen before, but who knows where Klaus took him. God, had they stolen it? It looked pretty nice, and she wouldn’t put it past Klaus. And Five hadn’t exactly been a sweet and innocent kid, they had all been known to get into a little bit of trouble on occasion.

“Are _you_ okay?” he asks instead.

“I’m fine,” she promises, smiling. “Are you sure--”

“No you aren’t,” Five interrupts. “Who were you talking to? Why wouldn’t they let you talk to, to your daughter?”

Allison sighs, squeezing his shoulder gently. “Oh. You heard all that, huh?” Five nods, looking up at her. “Well, that was my ex-husband, and he says I can’t see her until I do some things.”

“What things?” Five asks, and Allison presses her lips together, considering her words carefully.

“I… Did some stuff I maybe shouldn’t have. I broke his trust, and now I have to talk to some quack to prove I’m not a danger to my daughter.”

Five frowns a little, and she can practically see the thoughts running through his head. “Why don’t you just… make him let you?”

“Using my powers is what got me into trouble in the first place,” she explains. “I got a little too dependent on them, used them in ways I shouldn’t have, and now I’m… Facing the consequences, I suppose.”

“Oh.” Five takes a moment to absorb what she’s told him. “Do you miss her?”

“With everything I have.”

Five wraps his arms around her again, giving one more squeeze around her middle. “I hope you get to see her soon.”

“Me too, Five,” she murmurs, eyes welling with tears. “Me too.”

~~~

By the time Vanya gets there, Klaus and Five have returned and the search party has been called off. Allison and Five are having some sort of moment by the phone when she passes by, following Diego to the kitchen, where Klaus is sitting at the table, plates and pizzas in front of him. He doesn’t look too great, and she hopes he didn’t take Five anywhere too dangerous. Klaus knows he can’t just drag a ten-year-old to a crackhouse, right?

“So where the fuck did you two go?” Diego asks, flipping open one of the boxes.

“Griddy’s,” Klaus sighs, sitting up straight.

“ _After_ that,” Diego growls, grabbing a slice. “Wait, is this fucking pineapple?”

“It’s what the kid wanted,” Klaus says, reaching to smack it out of Diego’s hand. “Eat a different piece.”

“Fuck you.”

“Fuck _you._ ”

“Guys,” Vanya sighs, sitting down and grabbing a plate, serving herself a slice with peppers.

Klaus takes two slices of the pineapple and sets it aside for Five, then one of each from the other box for himself. Diego grabs a slice of pepperoni and takes a large bite, not bothering with a plate, and asks again, mouth full, “Sh’o wher’d ou go?”

“For fuck’s sake, we went to _bed._ Five was exhausted, practically fell asleep in the booth.”

“Bed where?” Vanya asks, taking a bite of her own pizza.

“My _apartment,_ alright?”

She glances at Diego, but he’s resolutely not looking in her direction, in fact he hasn’t even acknowledged that she’s there. “You have an apartment?”

“Yes, Diego,” Klaus says, biting into his slice. He groans happily, savoring the flavor, and closes his eyes. Diego glares, but the others join them, then, and he takes a seat without saying anything else.

Five sits where Klaus left his plate, pulling it to himself eagerly. Then Luther asks, “What trashcan did you dig this out of?”

“Ex _cuse_ you,” Klaus says, looking up and waving his food in Luther’s direction. “I paid good fucking money for this. But if it’s not _fancy_ enough for you, you don’t have to have any.”

“Yeah, it looks fresh,” Allison says, shrugging.

“Shtill ho’h,” Diego adds around another mouthful. Vanya rolls her eyes as Luther inspects the boxes before taking a piece.

“…Why would we take pizza from the trash?” Five asks, and Vanya turns to him, food halfway to his mouth, staring at their siblings. She looks back to the others, who are exchanging glances, but no one answers.

“Oh, you know LuLu,” Klaus finally says, waving one hand dismissively, a grin on his face. “He’s just one big kidder.” Five narrows his eyes at that and, honestly, what did Klaus expect? Luther had _never_ been one for jokes, always taking everything so seriously. Luther just shrugs and leans against the counter, eating, and Five doesn’t say anything else, starting on his own pizza.

After a few tense, silent moment of eating, Klaus speaks up. “So, Allie, sister dear, did I hear you having some troubles with the ex? Something about missing a therapy session?”

“Screw you,” she huffs, face darkening.

“No, no, just, therapy works over the phone, you know?” he says, one hand making vague gestures with the crust of his pizza. “Just call, I’m sure you can squeeze in a makeup appointment.” Allison blinks, expression clearing in surprise.

“Huh. That’s not a bad idea,” she says. “Thanks, I guess.” It looks like it almost pains her to say.

Klaus hums and grabs another slice, just picking the toppings off this time, leaving saucy crust behind on the plate.

“So why didn’t you just stay here last night?”

“Oh, geez, _I_ don’t know,” Klaus sighs dramatically, popping a pepperoni into his mouth. “Maybe it’s all the ghosts that hang around? Or, ooh, I know! It could be all the traumatic memories!”

Luther scoffs. “It wasn’t _that_ bad.”

“Speak for yourself!” Klaus exclaims. “I left for a _reason,_ and I’d really rather spend as little time here as possible.”

“So go, then,” Luther grumbles. “Why did you even bother coming?”

“Uh, for the sweet loot Daddy hopefully left behind, _duh._ ”

Diego rolls his eyes and Luther crosses his arms, glaring.

“Why would Dad leave _you_ anything? Don’t you think you’ve stolen your share of the inheritance by now?”

“Oh, please. A few knickknacks here and there _hardly_ adds up to a fair share of the estate,” Klaus bites back. Vanya meets Allison’s eyes, and she just shrugs, not willing to play peacekeeper, and Vanya doesn’t have a chance, considering Luther has never once listened to a thing she says. That much is obvious in the way Luther had definitely still been using the wrong pronouns for Klaus yesterday, even though she knows he’s read her book.

Pogo enters the room a moment later, which puts a stop to any continued fighting.

“Pogo, do we have a will around here or what?” Diego asks.

Pogo sighs, nodding slowly. “There is one,” he says, looking around at them all. “However, it appears to have gone missing, along with a number of other important papers.” His eyes land on Klaus, and suddenly the entire table turns to him.

“What? Why would I take _paperwork?”_ he asks defensively.

“The papers were kept in an ornate box with pearl inlay,” Pogo explains. “The box itself is of little importance, but the contents are not.”

“Klaus, cough it up,” Luther says, standing straight and holding his hand out.

“I didn’t take--!” he starts, but Diego is glaring and Allison shakes her head. “Alright, _fine,_ I took the stupid box,” Klaus admits, crossing his arms.

“Where is it?” Diego asks.

“My place. I haven’t even pawned the damn thing. It’ll take me two hours, tops, to go get it.”

“By yourself?” Diego scoffs. “I don’t think so.”

“ _Oh_ my God, what, you gonna babysit me the whole way there?”

“Yeah, maybe I will. Since you can’t seem to take care of anything by yourself.”

“I took care of Five just fine last night!”

At his name, Vanya turns back to Five, who is watching the argument silently, pizza forgotten, one slice still only half-eaten. The others don’t seem to have noticed.

“Maybe _we_ should be the judge of that,” Luther says. “Take Diego, let him see where you took Five.”

“For _fuck’s_ sake,” Klaus spits, standing up. “Alright, fine! Go get your keys, _hermano._ ” Then he storms out of the room, Diego dropping his slice to follow after him.

Before long, Allison stands to excuse herself. “I actually should go call my therapist.” Pogo turns to Luther after she leaves and invites him to come see something, which leaves Vanya with Five, who is now staring down at his food.

She sighs and turns to her little brother. “How you holdin’ up?”


	27. 27

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Five stares down at his pizza, trying to make sense of all the sharp barbs his siblings had been spitting at each other for two days now, until Vanya is speaking to him, and he realizes they’ve been left alone. He has no idea how to answer her question. He’s just _so_ confused, once again, and it’s starting to get very frustrating. Luther never jokes, no matter what Klaus had just said, and Diego was so suspicious of Klaus, like he would have taken Five somewhere dangerous. Luther even _agreed_ with Diego, which was also such a rare occurrence that Five couldn’t remember the last time it happened.
> 
> She seems to see how lost he feels, because she scoots her chair a little closer.
> 
> “It’s probably pretty confusing, huh? Everything’s so different.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> here's Five! I also have a Klaus section in the can, I just need to give it another once over and make sure it's done, so expect that to follow shortly!  
> I anticipate some anger directed at Vanya and Diego after these two chapters, and it makes me so nervous, cuz I love them both  
> and V... well, I wasn't going to have her point 5 in this direction, I was gonna let him find it himself, but, here we are.  
> also! I skipped over the pregnancy early on, but I've had an idea for a scene between Dave and Klaus discussing what they want the baby to call them. do ya'll wanna see that, even if it means delaying the plot a day?  
> aaaand, between last night's chapter and these two, I've written 7k+ today. I'm at 59k and losing my mind.

The first thing Luther says as they settle at the kitchen table for lunch is to ask if Klaus got the pizza from the trash. No, not _if,_ he asks _which_ trash he took it from. Five blinks up at his largest brother, stomach twisting. Why would he _say_ that?

Klaus tells him that they bought it, Allison says it looks fine, and Diego says something about how it’s still hot, so Luther takes a piece, but the calm, almost (but not really) joking manner of their tone is bewildering. He gapes at them for a moment before asking, “Why would we take pizza from the trash?” Things couldn’t have really been that bad for Klaus, could they have? And if they _were,_ why on Earth would they be _joking_ about it?

Everyone stares at each other, obviously reluctant to answer his questions once more, which just doubles the gnawing in his gut that it’s true. Klaus is the one to reply, waving off his concerns and laughing, claiming Luther was just joking, but Luther _never_ jokes. Five narrows his eyes, but if he doesn’t want to talk about it, Five won’t push. He turns to his food, instead, hoping that filling his stomach might settle his bubbling concerns.

Five listens as Klaus picks up the conversation again, which soon turns into another squabble with Luther, this time about the inheritance and Klaus’s habit of apparently stealing from the house over the years. Then Pogo arrives, and Diego steers the conversation to a more concrete discussion of the will, which has gone missing.

Everyone turns to Klaus, who whines, asking why he would bother to steal paperwork. “The papers were kept in an ornate box, with pearl inlay,” Pogo explains, and Luther holds out his hand, demanding Klaus hand it over.

“I didn’t take--!” he exclaims, but at the looks the others give him, Klaus deflates a bit as Five watches. “Alright, _fine,_ I took the stupid box,” he huffs, crossing his arms. Five isn’t sure how to take this information, but it had been made pretty clear that stealing wasn’t anything new for Klaus. but Klaus must have had a _reason,_ right? And then Diego is declaring that he’s going with Klaus to get it and the two are storming out.

Five stares down at his pizza, trying to make sense of all the sharp barbs his siblings had been spitting at each other for two days now, until Vanya is speaking to him, and he realizes they’ve been left alone. He has no idea how to answer her question. He’s just _so_ confused, once again, and it’s starting to get very frustrating. Luther never jokes, no matter what Klaus had just said, and Diego was so suspicious of Klaus, like he would have taken Five somewhere dangerous. Luther even _agreed_ with Diego, which was also such a rare occurrence that Five couldn’t remember the last time it happened.

She seems to see how lost he feels, because she scoots her chair a little closer. “It’s probably pretty confusing, huh? Everything’s so different.”

Five nods, shrugging a little. “Luther and Diego are so much angrier than before,” he says. “And everyone’s being so mean to Klaus. He didn’t do anything wrong.” laying his hand in hers. He 

“He?” Vanya asks, and why would _that_ be what she focused on? She was already using it!

“Yeah. That’s… That’s what Klaus uses, isn’t it?”

Vanya nods, smiling. “I just didn’t realize he had told you.”

“Well, I mean, he didn’t, exactly…” It had been Ben, but was Five not supposed to talk about that? No one believes Ben is there, and they’re already mad at Klaus, he doesn’t want to make things worse. “But why’s everyone so angry?”

“We didn’t know where you were. Klaus just took you, without telling anyone. You guys could have been anywhere, they’re all just worried.”

Five shakes his head. “That’s not true. Everyone was being jerks yesterday, too. And Diego and Allison are the ones that left me with Klaus! He just took me for donuts and then back to his house. This morning we had waffles, and he even took me shopping for clothes!”

“Oh?” Vanya says, lifting an eyebrow and glancing at the clothes he was wearing, which were still Klaus’s, and way too big.

“They’re still in the car,” he says, face warming just a little under her scrutiny. “He gave me some of his clothes to wear out.”

“Where did he take you?”

“I don’t know, some second-hand store. He said he shops there all the time for--” Five freezes, biting his tongue. One thing Klaus asked him not to tell, and he already almost fucked it up. He hopes that, if Ben is still here, he doesn’t tell Klaus how fast he nearly blew it. “F-for… Stuff.”

Vanya’s other eyebrow raises to join the first. “‘Stuff’, huh? What kind of stuff?”

“Just… Clothes and stuff,” Five says, shrugging. “It wasn’t anything weird! I mean, except he made me try everything on, and changing in public is… weird.”

Vanya nods, humming. “Yeah, the world outside the Academy takes some getting used to. Did he take you anywhere else?”

“Just to get pizza,” Five answers, looking back down at his plate. He doesn’t feel particularly hungry anymore.

“But Klaus didn’t make you do anything or go anywhere that made you uncomfortable?”

“No!” Five gasps, looking back up. “He and Abba were really nice!”

“Abba?” Vanya asks, brow furrowing, and _God damn it,_ now he really had fucked up, but if he didn’t bring up Grace, maybe it would still be okay.

“H-he’s Klaus’s boyfriend. I think. I didn’t ask, but they shared a room, and, and kissed, so…”

“Was there anyone _else_ there?”

“No,” Five insists, shaking his head. “It was just them.”

“Do you know what part of town he took you to?”

Five narrows his eyes. He knows an interrogation when he hears it, and this is _definitely_ starting to sound like one. She’s fishing for information, for evidence to condemn Klaus just like the others. Five isn’t sure if Vanya would get more vindication out of knowing it was a bad part of town or that Five doesn’t actually know where it was, but he is _really_ getting tired of his siblings’ distrust of Klaus, so he ignores the question. “He didn’t do anything wrong. Why are you trying to get me to say that he did?”

“Five, I’m not trying to trick you into anything, I just want to know what happened. Klaus isn’t always… the most honest, so I just want to hear your side.”

“My side is _his_ side,” Five insists, crossing his arms. “I don’t understand why you’re all so suspicious. I-if Diego had taken me out, or Allison, would you guys be so mad?” By the way her face twists, Five can see, instantly, that the answer is no, as he suspected. “What did Klaus do to make you all so mad at him?”

“Five,” Vanya sighs. “Klaus has done a lot of things. And most of them aren’t really… age appropriate for you.”

“I’m not a little kid!” Five shouts, pounding his fist on the table. “Why won’t you just _tell_ me?”

Vanya sighs and stands up. “Come on. Let me show you something.”

Five doesn’t stand right away, watching her for a moment, but this is Vanya. She’s never done him any harm, she’s the sweetest of his siblings, she’s probably just trying to protect him, but he feels like he’s simultaneously being coddled and scrutinized, and he doesn’t like it. Finally, he gets up and follows her, leaving his pizza behind. She leads him to the library, where there’s a huge portrait of himself hanging on the wall. But rather than pointing it out to him, not that he needed her to, she’s gesturing to the bookshelves. “You might find some answers in here,” she says.

Five frowns, wondering what on Earth she could expect him to find amongst Dad’s books, but before he can approach, Allison’s footsteps are rushing towards them.

“Vanya!” she exclaims when she finds them. “You’ve got to see this.”

“What’s going on?”

“Just… come see.”

Vanya starts after her, and Five makes to join them, but Allison stops him, insisting it’s grown-up business. This pisses Five off, but a temper tantrum won’t help at this point, so he just glares sourly until they’re gone. He turns to the portrait, wondering how long after he disappeared that it was put up.

He stares for a little while, and can’t help his thoughts drifting to Dad. When had he put it up?  _ Why _ had he put it up? Did he really miss him that much? Ben had a statue, too, but Dad had never been so sentimental. They don’t feel like things he would put up as reminders of cherished children, but rather reminders to the others not to screw up again.

Five still doesn’t know how Ben died, and that’s something he has to figure out before he can go back. He won’t let them all be blindsided again.

Sighing, he turns back to the books. May as well see what he can find. Maybe something here could explain the dysphoria thing Ben had mentioned Klaus has? Five has no idea what it means, but it sounded like it was the reason Klaus hides his chest, however he’s doing it.

He starts with the D’s, and he’s not sure how the word is spelled, or if it would be in a title, but it’s all he has to go off of. Reaching the end of the section, he continues on into the E’s, just hoping to find something that might sound promising.

Near the end, he finds it. Vanya’s name is on a book, titled  _ Extra-Ordinary, _ and this has to be what she intended him to find. Picking it up, he sees that it’s an autobiography about growing up with their siblings and father.

It’s perfect, exactly what he needs. This book has to have the answers to his questions, it would explain what happened, why everyone is how they are now, maybe it would even tell him how Ben died. He hears the others coming downstairs, but they don’t approach him, hurrying off instead,  probably going to take care of whatever  _ adult business _ they need to deal with.

Five takes a seat in an armchair and curls up, opening the book, desperate to finally get some answers.


	28. 28

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “You shouldn’t have brought him to this part of town at all!”
> 
> “I’m _sorry_ it isn’t as nice as we were raised to be accustomed, but it's a hell of a lot better than the alternative," Klaus snaps, pointing to the next building. “Let me out here.”
> 
> “Oh, I’m not just _letting you out.”_
> 
> “Well I’m not _taking you in,”_ Klaus mocks.
> 
> As soon as the car is in a parking space, Klaus is jumping out the door and hurrying towards the building in an attempt to get the door closed before Diego can catch up.
> 
> “God damn it, Klaus!” Diego shouts from the car, just as the door seals behind them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> again, Diego is dumb and says dumb, mean things, I'm sorry.

Klaus sits in Diego’s car, irritably texting Dave to please pack up a bag for them and bring it down to the lobby so Diego can’t follow them up to the actual apartment. They send Ben ahead so he can at least keep an eye on Gracie while Dave runs downstairs to drop it off. They hate leaving Five behind, but Diego wouldn’t have let him come, and the others wouldn’t leave him alone after last night.

Klaus directs Diego through the city, and that’s the only conversation they have until Diego is making his way into what is definitely the “bad” part of town. “Is this seriously where you took Five last night?”

“Mmhm,” Klaus hums, eyes still on their phone as they wait for Dave to text back a confirmation that he’s got it around.

“To another junkie whose couch you’re surfing on?”

“I am _not_ couch surfing,” Klaus huffs, rolling their eyes.

“Oh, my bad. I meant _mattress_ surfing,” Diego says, and Klaus looks up sharply, frowning.

“It’s _my_ fucking mattress!”

“Sure,” Diego snorts. “Whatever you say.”

“Fuck. You.”

“No thanks. Save that for whoever’s upstairs,” he sneers, and Klaus glares.

“Fuck off, Diego! We work hard to pay our bills, I don’t have to--”

“Working _how?_ Slinging crack?”

“No! Holy shit, Di, I wouldn’t have brought Five to a dealer!”

“You shouldn’t have brought him to this part of town at all!”

“I’m _sorry_ it isn’t as nice as we were raised to be accustomed, but it's a hell of a lot better than the alternative," Klaus snaps, pointing to the next building. “Let me out here.”

“Oh, I’m not just _letting you out._ ”

“Well I’m not _taking you in_ ,” Klaus mocks.

As soon as the car is in a parking space, Klaus is jumping out the door and hurrying towards the building in an attempt to get the door closed before Diego can catch up.

“God damn it, Klaus!” Diego shouts from the car, just as the door seals behind them.

Klaus sighs, and a second later, the elevator opens and Dave steps out, duffle in hand. Klaus rushes to him, just needing a moment before going back to face them all again.

“Hey, babe,” Dave greets, letting Klaus drag him into a hug. “Everything okay?”

“Oh, who knows anymore,” they sigh. “Guess I accidentally stole the will.”

“Shit. How pissed are they?”

“Quite. But I don’t think they’re surprised.”

“Well, that explains the box, but how about the clothes? Are you gonna stay there ’til this gets worked out, or…” Dave gives them a little squeeze around the shoulders. “Talk to me, babe. What’s going on?”

“Yeah, uh, I don’t think they’re gonna let me take Five again, and I can’t just leave him there, not until…” Klaus takes a deep breath, letting it out slowly. “I just have to know whoever he stays with is gonna take care of him.”

“Alright. Any idea how long it’ll take?”

“No. And it’ll be a huge fight. And so will the will reading. And any other conversation we get into. I’ll keep you updated, okay?”

“Of course. I’ll find a sitter, just check in so we can talk to Baba, okay?” Dave lifts his hand, brushing curls from Klaus’s face, and they smile, heart fluttering warmly.

“Every day,” they promise. A second later, there’s banging on the door, followed by a very muffled, “Klaus, open this damn door!”

Dave looks up and slides his arms down around Klaus’s waist, pulling him closer. “Who’s the angry gorilla?”

Klaus snorts, leaning their head into his shoulder. “Oh, please, the gorilla isn’t even here. That’s just Diego.”

“Oh?” Diego is still banging, but he’s stopped shouting.

“He thinks I’m incapable of taking care of myself,” Klaus explains, looking up at Dave.

“Hmmph.” Dave rolls his eyes and presses a kiss to Klaus’s lips. It’s brief, just a soft meeting of mouths, but it’s exactly what Klaus needs. “Well, go prove him wrong, then,” he whispers against Klaus’s lips. Then he hands them the bag and, after one more quick kiss, he gives Klaus a playful slap on the ass, which has them lifting an eyebrow and smirking.

“You behave,” they chuckle, wagging one finger in his face. “I don’t have time for that, mister.”

Dave gives them the most innocent look, as if he’s done nothing to deserve a scolding, and then kisses them one more time. “I’ll see you soon, yeah?”

“Yeah,” Klaus promises, and finally turns and heads back to the door, where Diego is glowering. Reaching it, Klaus glances back to see Dave is in the elevator again, and they wave GOODBYE as they open the door with the other hand. “Alright, lets go,” they say brightly, like they hadn’t deliberately locked Diego out of the conversation.

“Who was that?” Diego demands, craning his neck to get a better look as the elevator doors begin to close.

“Dave,” Klaus says simply. And, holding up the bag, they add, “He brought the box, see?”

Diego frowns, turning to Klaus, who has started heading towards the car. “He had his hands all over you!”

“He’s my _boyfriend,”_ Klaus calls back over their shoulder.

“He slapped your ass in front of me! What the fuck?!”

“Yeah, and I _liked it,”_ Klaus laughs, flipping him the bird and climbing in the car.

Diego climbs in on the other side a minute later, and they sit silently for a few seconds.

“Did you at least wait until Five was asleep to get high and fuck?”

“Holy shit, do you even listen to yourself?” They let out a soft, slightly hysterical giggle. “We didn’t fuck _or_ get high, we just went to bed.”

“Sure.” Diego doesn’t sound convinced.

Klaus can’t even blame him, really, if this were five or six years ago, Diego would probably be right. Klaus has always been a disaster, hanging out with all sorts of unsavory characters, doing unsavory things. The only thing that managed to save them was Grace Kelly, and Diego doesn’t even know she exists. Why would he think Klaus had changed? But it still kind of hurts that won’t even entertain the thought that Klaus might be telling the truth. “Do you really have _no_ faith in me at all?”

“After some of the shit you’ve pulled?”

“I wouldn’t put _Five_ at risk! I’m not an idiot, Diego!”

“Oh, that’s _news_ to me!”

“You’re such an ass,” is all they can say, throat tightening as their eyes start to itch, and they are _not_ about to cry in front of Diego, so they turn to stare out the window instead.

Diego starts the car without replying, but doesn’t pull out right away. 

After another long, dragging silence, during which Klaus manages to get their tear ducts back under control, their brother speaks again, voice quiet and backed with steel. “Does he hurt you?”

“Jesus H. Christ,” Klaus sighs, tipping their head against the window.

“Does. He. _Hurt._ You.” Diego is growling his words through clenched teeth, and Klaus’s anger flares.

 _“No!”_ they snap, turning to glare at Diego once more. “Dave is a great guy. He doesn’t hit me, or yell, or _whore me out,_ or whatever else you might think he’s doing! He wouldn’t hurt Five, he was actually really great with him last night, and we love each other! Isn’t that fucking enough?”

Diego is watching Klaus, but what he’s looking for, Klaus can’t even guess at anymore. “Look, I just want you to be safe, Klaus.”

“I’ve been taking care of myself just fine since we were thirteen.”

“Just fine my _ass._ How many OD’s have you had?”

“Misjudging a dose isn’t the same as staying with an abuser, Di! I told you _last time_ that he wouldn’t hurt me, and I still mean it. He’s a good guy.”

Diego is quiet again, hands gripping the steering wheel and flexing around it. Ben has appeared in the backseat and is glancing between them. “What’d I miss?”

Klaus doesn’t respond, crossing their arms and staring out the window again. They take deep, slow breaths, counting them out silently, the way they’ve been practicing. Finally, Diego asks, “Last time?”

Klaus sighs, rolling their eyes. Of course he doesn’t remember, why would he? It was one in a thousand times he’d shown up to get Klaus from a hospital. They were practically a regular there for a few years.

“The last time we saw each other. I was hit by a car?” they prompt, looking to jog his memory. “You thought Dave had done it.”

“I… shit. You’re still together? That was like a year ago!”

“Suuuure was. It’ll be two years this summer.”

“Seriously?” Klaus can’t blame Diego for sounding so surprised.

“Yep,” Klaus says, popping the last sound.

“Wasn’t it three years on Valentine’s?” Ben asks.

Klaus shrugs, nodding a bit. “I guess it depends where you count from.”

“What?” Diego asks.

“You know, we met the day Luther left!” Klaus distracts, looking back at Diego. “Watched the launch together, even. It was on every TV in the club.”

“Right…” Diego has one eyebrow lifted, eyeing them, but he just rolls his eyes and finally looks in the rearview, putting the car in gear and backing out. “Four years and he’s still putting up with your shit?”

And that’s just Diego’s way of playing nice, trying to lighten the mood with a joke, but it still stings. Klaus smiles and shrugs like it doesn’t. “Guess so. Really hit the jackpot with him, honestly.” They spend the ride taking measured breaths and trying to calm the angry frustration still simmering in their veins.


	29. 29

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Is this about what the doctor called you?”
> 
> Klaus nods, sniffling.
> 
> “Klaus, if that’s not what you want to be called, we’ll pick something else.”
> 
> “Well I can’t exactly be Daddy, can I?” Klaus asks. Dave rubs one hand along their arm.
> 
> “If you want to be Daddy, then why not?”
> 
> “What would she call you, then?”
> 
> “Well…” Dave lets out a sigh, leaning his head against Klaus. “Did I ever tell you about my dad?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> alright, guys, today is short and sweet, a throwback to pre-canon while Klaus is pregnant!  
> this chapter deals with their dysphoria, but it's Dave's POV, so it's a bit more vague and not really probing into it.  
> instead, we talk about Dave's family and why he chose to use Abba with Gracie.  
> I am not Jewish, so please, if I've really screwed it up, let me know, but we really don't go into it _too_ deeply.

Dave has been putzing about the apartment for an hour or so,  now, just tidying up things that didn’t really need it, scrubbing down the stovetop despite it’s already spotless condition. Well, not  _ spotless, _ but those stains would probably never come out, and who knows how long they’ve been there or what they came from. Klaus’s appointment that morning had gone pretty well, overall, the baby appeared to be healthy and developing normally. When the doctor asked if they wanted to know the sex, they had exchanged a glance, but they’d already known they wanted to know. Not that it mattered, not really, but it was one of those milestones that they wanted to experience. So they’d nodded eagerly, and the doctor announced it was a girl, smiling brightly at them, and said, “Congratulations, Mommy,” to Klaus.

Dave, who was holding their hand at the time, didn’t miss the way Klaus tensed a bit, and he squeezed gently, rubbing his thumb over their knuckles. Klaus’s emotions could be a little unpredictable at the best of times, and while hormonal and over four months pregnant, the mood shifts could be even more sudden, especially when it comes to the dysphoria.

Not that Klaus would  _ tell _ Dave or Ben when it happened. But Dave had learned some of the signs and triggers over the years.

Walking home, Klaus was quiet, a little withdrawn, and when they made it to the apartment, they had plead exhaustion and went to lie down. Dave left them for a while, giving Klaus some space to deal with however they were feeling on their own, but it’s been over an hour, now, and the bedroom has stayed quiet. He isn’t sure where Ben might be lurking, if he’s even in the apartment or if he’d gone off to do whatever it is he does, but he hasn’t even heard any murmuring or arguing from the bedroom between them, so he assumes Ben hasn’t bothered Klaus.

Dave heats some water and adds a tea bag before knocking on the door and poking his head in. Klaus is lying in their bed, Dave’s pillow held tight to their chest. There’s a small pile of tissues on the floor beside them and tear tracks on their face. Their eyes are closed and Klaus is breathing slow and shallow, sleeping but only just, and they stir as Dave makes his way in and sits on the other side of the mattress.

“Good morning, handsome,” he murmurs, offering a little smile. “I made your favorite tea.”

Klaus sniffles and returns the smile weakly. “Thanks, babe,” they croak, and Dave can hear the way their throat is clogged from the crying.

“You doing okay?” he asks, passing the mug over once Klaus has sat up. They nod, taking a deep sip, and when they speak again, it’s with a clearer voice.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Just… Tired. Making a person really takes it out of you, ya know?”

Dave hums, sliding closer, and pulls Klaus to his side, pressing a kiss to the top of their head. “I’m sure.” They sit silently, Klaus sipping their tea, for a few minutes before Dave decides to press the issue. He wants to help, but if Klaus won’t tell him what’s wrong, he can’t do much. “You wanna talk about it?”

Klaus sighs, shaking their head. “Not really. It’s stupid, Dave.”

“It’s not stupid,” he insists, reaching to tip Klaus’s face to look at him. “Talk to me, Klaus.” Tears start to well again, and Dave wraps his arms around them, letting Klaus tuck their face into his shoulder. After another minute or so, he asks, “Is this about what the doctor called you?”

Klaus nods, sniffling.

“Klaus, if that’s not what you want to be called, we’ll pick something else.”

“Well I can’t exactly be Daddy, can I?” Klaus asks, and, God, they’re practically whimpering at this point. Dave rubs one hand along their arm.

“If you want to be Daddy, then why not?”

“What would she call you, then?”

“Well…” Dave lets out a sigh, leaning his head against Klaus. “Did I ever tell you about my dad?”

“A little,” Klaus says, lifting their head just enough to glance up at him. “You didn’t really know him, though, right?”

Dave nods. “Yeah. He died when I was real little, and Mom did her best, but growing up in Dallas without a dad was kinda rough. Especially with all the expectations she and Uncle Brian seemed to have for me.”

Klaus hums, letting their head fall back to his shoulder.

“Anyway, I would spend the holidays with my dad’s parents, a whole week, every December, and it was the highlight of the year for me.”

“Hanukkah, right?”

“Right. They would tell me all sorts of stories about him when I was there, and every one seemed to start with ‘Your Abba…’.”

“Abba?”

Dave nods. “It’s the Hebrew word for Dad. I never had much opportunity to really embrace that side of my heritage, Mom’s side is  _ very _ Christian, but I always kind of thought I’d like to be called Abba, too.”

“Okay. Whatever you want, Dave,” Klaus says, finding his hand and giving it a squeeze.

“So, if you want Daddy, it’s all yours,” Dave offers.

Klaus sighs, shaking their head. “I don’t like that, either,” they confess softly. “It’s stupid, I mean, what else is there? I never thought I’d have to… I never thought I would be  _ here, _ Dave. About to be a parent?  _ Me? _ Sometimes it still feels like a… a dream, or extremely vivid hallucination. I never once thought about what I might want to be called by a hypothetical future child, never thought I’d have one, and here we are, less than six months until she’s here, til we can actually hold her, and she’ll be  _ real, _ and I’m having a panic attack about being called  _ mommy. _ ”

“We’ll come up with something. Even if we have to make it up. We’ll find one just as unique as you, okay?”

Klaus snorts out a soft laugh, and Dave catches their smile for just a moment. “Okay, well, good luck with that,  _ Abba. _ ”

Dave grins, heart soaring, and squeezes Klaus close, kissing their forehead. “I love you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Thanksgiving to my American readers, Happy Thursday in November to everyone else!  
> I am planning to make some edits to the Five and Vanya talk from 27, and by the time I put up chapter 30, I should have those finished. But should I just edit the existing chapter, or post a new chapter retconning it?
> 
> I'm also considering Diego's POV of 28, but idk


	30. 30

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dave smiles and beckons them closer. Klaus obliges, moving to lean against the wall as well, from the opposite side, and Dave kisses them softly. "Thank you. It smells great." His heart feels so full, bursting at the seams with love, because Klaus had done this for _him,_ even if they weren't the most skilled cook.
> 
> Klaus sighs, rubbing their face. "I burnt the kugel," they admit.
> 
> Dave blinks, surprised. "Kugel?"
> 
> "Yeah, and the-- oh fuck!" Klaus spins around again, returning to the splattering oil. "Damn it, damn it, damn it," they mutter, fishing dark pucks from the pan. Dave watches Klaus transfer them to a plate, where there are a few others, looking a little better, but still awfully dark. Sighing, Klaus frowns at the skillet of oil.
> 
> “Are those… Latkes?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey guys, happy holidays, here's a flashback chapter! this one is set about two months before Klaus was hit by the car, mid-December, while they're still living in a motel room
> 
> reminder that I am not Jewish, but I did try my best to pick appropriate food items for the holiday, and if I've made any egregious errors, I hope you can let me know
> 
> EDITING NOTES:
> 
> I have removed four chapters (30-33) from the fic tonight, and should be ready to start uploading again by the end of the year. I've removed the chapters starting at Diego and Klaus's return from the apartment, which includes the Diego-Luther-Five convo with Mom and the Klaus-Vanya-Allison convo with Pogo (I'm rearranging the groups bc Luther and Diego going together is insane) through the scene in the kitchen with Luther being lit on fire (it feels a bit over the top, whoops). If there's still confusion when I start posting again, I'll do my best to clarify exactly which things can be dismissed.

Klaus sees Dave off with a soft kiss and a smile, locking the motel room behind them. Dave goes in one direction, and Klaus heads in the other. “Are you ready for some shopping?” he asks Ben.

“ _Christmas_ shopping?”

“Well, more like, generic-mid-December-celebration shopping.”

“Right, right,” Ben sighs. “Because you can’t be simple about anything.”

Klaus huffs, rolling his eyes, and leans against the bus stop, watching down the road. “We need some decorations. _And,_ I’m making dinner!”

“Dinner?” Ben echoes, and Klaus looks up to see him staring doubtfully.

_“Yes,”_ Klaus retorts, shaking his head as the bus rolls up.

“What are you even making?”

Klaus smirks, climbing the stairs and swiping his bus card. “Mm, something special.”

“Why don’t I like the sound of that?” Ben sighs, following him to a seat near the back.

“Because you’re a stick in the mud,” Klaus replies as he sits.

They ride for close to forty-five minutes, the bus is busy, and stops are longer than usual, but Klaus keeps himself occupied with his phone, double checking the address of the store, until their stop is announced. Hopping up, Klaus announces, “This is us,” and makes his way to the opening door, Ben following a moment later.

“What are we doing in this part of town?” Ben asks.

“Shopping,” Klaus reminds him, looking around for a street sign as he digs out his phone again. “I just gotta orient myself, hang on.”

“Do you even know where we’re going?”

Klaus scoffs, rolling his eyes. “Mostly. I found this specialty store online.”

“Specializes in what?”

Klaus hesitates for a moment, not making eye contact. “…Jewish cuisine.”

Ben sighs, shaking his head. “Right, yeah, okay. That’s almost cute, y’know? You’re gonna try to cook for him.”

Klaus sticks his tongue out at him, ignoring the glance he gets from the people passing in the other direction. “I am not _cute,_ I am _hot._ And Dave will agree.”

“Oh, I’m _sure_ he will. Especially once you’ve caught on fire.”

“I am not that bad at cooking!” Klaus squawks, offended.

“Keep tellin’ yourself that.”

“I have never been _so insulted,”_ Klaus huffs exaggeratedly, one hand pressed to his chest in mock-shock. Ben laughs, shaking his head, and lets Klaus lead them down the street.

~~~

Letting himself into the apartment, Dave first notices the small evergreen shoved into the corner between the bed and the window, roots partially exposed and stuffed into a pot of muddy water and surrounded by a scattering of needles on the floor. A string of blue and white lights is wound around it, a bit messy, and… a star of David is perched precariously on top. He blinks, unsure, exactly, what to make of it.

Then he hears muttered swears from the kitchenette and turns that way. Klaus's back is to him, the love of his life standing at the counter, and Dave recognizes the sizzling sound of oil popping. "God damn," Klaus hisses, jerking their hand back from whatever is frying on the hot plate. There's a pot to the side, steam still rising, so they must have just finished with it. And then a timer rings and Klaus scrambles to shut it off without getting more burning oil on themself.

Their hair is a mess, windswept and sweat damp from the heat of the kitchen, and they’re dressed in loose, comfortable clothes. The dangling sleeve of which, however, has Dave grateful that all they have is a hot plate to cook on, because he's certain Klaus would have caught it in the burner by now otherwise. He watches for a moment, door still hanging open behind himself, as Klaus grabs an oven mitt and opens the toaster oven, still swearing to themself. They pull out a casserole dish, which is smoking ever so slightly.

"Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck," they chant softly, setting it on the counter. "Ben, this is still edible, right? It's just the top that's burnt." A moment later, presumably Ben replying in the pause, Klaus whips around with a surprised, "What?!" Klaus and Dave lock eyes, and he smiles, seeing streaks of what looks like a now-dried batter on their face and the apron they're wearing. "Dave! You're early!" they exclaim.

Dave takes a step in, closes the door, and glances at his phone. "Mm, actually, I'm running a little late, doll. What's all this, though?" He makes his way to half-wall separating the kitchenette from the rest of the room, and leans over it, craning his neck to get a peek at the food. The casserole is a little black, but Dave figures it's salvageable, and the soup smells incredible. Something with chicken.

"Um, dinner?" Klaus offers, face turning pink. "I guess it was a little harder than I expected. It was supposed to be ready when you got home."

Dave smiles and beckons them closer. Klaus obliges, moving to lean against the wall as well, from the opposite side, and Dave kisses them softly. "Thank you. It smells great." His heart feels so full, bursting at the seams with love, because Klaus had done this for _him_ , even if they weren't the most skilled cook.

Klaus sighs, rubbing their face. "I burnt the kugel," they admit.

Dave blinks, surprised. "Kugel?"

"Yeah, and the-- oh fuck!" Klaus spins around again, returning to the splattering oil. "Damn it, damn it, damn it," they mutter, fishing dark pucks from the pan. Dave watches Klaus transfer them to a plate, where there are a few others, looking a little better, but still awfully dark. Sighing, Klaus frowns at the skillet of oil.

“Are those… Latkes?”

“Well, they’re _supposed_ to be,” Klaus huffs, killing the heat. “Hopefully some of them are okay.”

Dave straightens up and walks around the corner, into the kitchenette proper. He comes up behind Klaus, wrapping his arms around their waist, and hooks his chin over their shoulder. Klaus had made kugel and latkes. For _him_. And they’d burnt them, sure, but Dave would still eat every bite. “They’re perfect,” he murmurs into their ear, giving a soft little squeeze.

Klaus snorts, shaking their head. “I know they aren’t,” they say. “But at least I didn’t burn the place down like _someone_ thought I would.” Klaus sends a half-playful glare in what must be the direction of Ben, and Dave imagines there’s an affronted look on Klaus’s brother’s face at the accusation. Klaus tends to exaggerate, but Dave doesn’t doubt that Ben was teasing them about their lack of skills in the kitchen earlier. He smiles into Klaus’s shoulder, pressing a gentle kiss to the inch of exposed skin beside their neck.

Klaus laughs, leaning back into him, and waves to Ben as he apparently retreats for the evening. After another moment of just holding Klaus contentedly, Dave reaches up and swipes one finger through the mess on Klaus’s face. “You’ve got a little somethin’ there,” he teases, smirking at the wide-eyed look that Klaus turns to him.

“Oh, god, I’m a mess,” they groan, pulling out of Dave’s arms and untying the apron. “Give me five minutes to clean up. You get comfy, alright? Then we can eat.”

“Sure,” Dave hums, reluctantly letting Klaus escape his hold. “Don’t take too long, though, I’m starving.”

Klaus disappears into the bathroom and Dave steps up to the counter to take a look at the soup. If Klaus had gone out of their way to make latkes and _kugel,_ Dave has a feeling he knows what’s in the pot. He is not disappointed when he peeks in, finding matzah balls in a chicken broth, full of veggies and shredded chicken. It doesn’t quite take him back to his grandmother’s kitchen, her recipe involved so many spices that Dave couldn’t even name them all, but his mouth is watering all the same.

So are his eyes, actually, and Dave replaces the lid, blinking to clear them. It’s been a long year for them, with a lot of changes and growth, Klaus finally getting off the hard stuff and both of them off the street (even if it was just into a shitty motel), and it’s been _so long_ since he’s had these sorts of foods, and the idea of having them, of sharing them with Klaus, has him feeling warm and happy. Nevermind the fact that it was Klaus who made it all, with him in mind, just because they love him. It leaves his chest aching, so full of love that he’s overflowing.

Klaus comes back from the bathroom, and Dave is still standing at the counter, trying to figure out what he’s supposed to do with all these emotions. He’s practically drowning in it, but it’s _good_ and he’s _happy_. Klaus touches his shoulder, one brow quirked, and Dave can’t help sweeping them up into a tight hug and a deep kiss. Klaus lets out a quiet sound of surprise before sinking into it, wrapping their arms around his neck.

When they finally separate, Klaus blinks, lips red and swelling. “Well. Good to see you, too, baby.” They stare for a moment, watching Dave closely, and Dave honestly has no idea how much of what he’s feeling is showing on his face.

“I just love you. _So_ much, Klaus,” he says, smiling and lifting one hand to cradle their face. 

“You… You are just so amazing, and you always manage to surprise me.” Klaus’s face is warming under his hand, and they seem to be at a loss for words for a second, so Dave takes the opportunity to swoop in for another kiss, a little more chaste this time. He ends the kiss slowly, inching back from Klaus’s lips until they separate with a soft, wet noise. “Thank you,” he says again, because he needs Klaus to know how thankful he is, not just for this meal, but for _everything_ Klaus has done for or given to him in their time together.

Klaus looks a little lost, between the kisses and Dave’s words, which maybe haven’t done the best job of getting his thoughts across, but he’ll make sure they know. They have plenty of time for that, but right now, there’s a hot meal waiting for them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> trivia that didn't make it into the scene:
> 
> Klaus's POV was written as Grace's first winter, but it felt more fitting pre-Grace
> 
> Klaus is defo already pregnant by this point, but barely a month along and has no idea
> 
> Klaus stole that tree from a public park (he dug it up and intends to return it, but I'm not sure how he didn't get caught...)
> 
> the lady at the specialty store was super nice and helpful and sold Klaus homemade latke batter, matzah balls, and chicken stock to cook with
> 
> Klaus chose to celebrate on December 21st, the winter solstice, because Hanukkah ended on the 20th that year (2017) and Christmas wasn't for a few more days (not that the Hargreeves ever celebrated it, but Klaus has probably been to their share of Christmas parties over the years)
> 
> Klave have some hella awesome sex after dinner, full of Dave just absolutely worshipping Klaus
> 
> Ben probably complains about how naked they still are when he gets back


	31. 31

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Can Mom even do that? Is she capable?" Allison asks.
> 
> "Clearly she can!" Luther insists, pointing to the screen.
> 
> "Wait wait wait," Vanya says, leaning in closer to watch again. "Allison’s right, she _shouldn't_ be able to. She was built to be a caretaker and protector. She's meant to heal, and assist anyone in danger."
> 
> "So, what, her hardware is degrading?"
> 
> "I don't know," Vanya admits. "Maybe?"
> 
> "Let's talk to her," Allison suggests. "We should at least get her side of things. Besides, she seemed a little out of it yesterday." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy New Year, binches!!
> 
> I have to admit, I didn't get quite as much done as I was hoping. I got stuck on editing Five's POV, but once that's done, I'll be starting New Content for the next chapter, which I have outlined this week. I won't be writing as fast or updating as often as I was in November, but I am setting goals so that I _am_ writing most days and keeping ahead of my posting, at least just enough.
> 
> The tentative plan is to post once or twice a week, depending how busy or inspired I may be.
> 
> This chapter is also New Content, finally an Allison chapter that I almost feel good about! The next few chapters will be edits of three of the four chapters I deleted (Luther's POV has been removed, the body reveal will come later, eventually, somehow, idk yet, but not right there). Please enjoy, and expect Diego's POV to drop around Tuesday or Wednesday!

Allison excuses herself from the kitchen after Klaus and Diego leave, and calls her therapist. She doesn’t _like_ therapy, she would never hurt her daughter, but she can’t deny that she’s gotten too used to using her powers for every little thing. She knows she has to change, but it’s hard and more nerve-wracking than anything else she’s ever done. If she could just Rumour _herself,_ she probably would. To be less anxious and more confident and to stop using her powers when she doesn’t need to.

But taking her _child_ was too much, Patrick had no right, and to do interviews with her, _about_ Allison? She knows she’s being made out to be the bad guy here, and putting that all in Claire’s head isn’t fair.

So, she has to get through this court-ordered therapy, make some progress, and get her daughter back in her arms. Scheduling a make-up session isn’t even that hard. When she’s finished, she goes upstairs. She’d heard Luther head up with Pogo shortly after she picked up the phone. She finds Luther alone in a small security room. One wall is made up of dozens of small screens, and there are boxes full of tapes scattered around.

Stepping in, she gets a better look at the video that’s playing. It only shows on one screen, and after a second, she realizes that it’s Dad, in bed, and Mom standing beside him as he flails… and dies.

“Luther…” she breathes, and he looks up. “Wha… Where did you find this?”

He shrugs, gesturing to what must be hundreds of tapes. “He was getting paranoid, he must have started up the security system again.” Then he rewinds and replays the tape.

“What was she doing in there…?”

“The tea,” Luther suggests, pointing to the screen. “She could be poisoning him.”

“I don’t know…”

They watch the tape again, saying nothing, and then Allison turns to the door. “I’m getting Vanya.”

“What? Why?”

“Because she’s our sister and deserves to be in the loop,” she says, striding out of the room and down the hall to the stairs. She hurries down them and pauses, hearing a voice from the library, and heads that way. “Vanya!” she exclaims upon finding her. “You have to see this.”

“What’s going on?” she asks, blinking up at Allison in confusion, Five beside her.

“Just… come see,” Allison insists. Vanya agrees and makes to follow, but so does Five, and this isn’t appropriate for him. He’s just a kid, hardly in double digits, he doesn’t need to see this tape. “No, Five, why don’t you stay here. This is… adult business.”

“I’m not a child,” Five grumbles, and the sisters exchange a glance before looking back at him, eyebrows raised. He whines, and Allison is almost surprised that he doesn’t stomp his foot. She _is_ surprised that he doesn’t argue further, just glaring until the girls leave.

Vanya follows her up to the hall Luther is camped in, asking once more what's going on. "Luther found some security footage," Allison explains as they approach the room.

"Of what?" Vanya's question is answered before Allison can try-- Luther is watching it again, and they walk in just as Dad starts to collapse. "Oh."

"Grace killed him," Luther says.

"Grace?" Allison repeats. "She was _Mom_ this morning."

"She's a machine, Allison."

"That raised us, tucked us in, _cared_ for us! And we just abandoned her here."

"Wait, you think Mom did it?" Vanya asks, surprised.

"Well, it seems pretty obvious," Luther says, backing the tape up again. "Watch."

So they do. She walks in, leans over the bed, handing him his tea, and a moment later he's dying as she just watches and slowly makes her way out of the room.

"Can Mom even do that? Is she capable?" Allison asks.

"Clearly she can!" Luther insists, pointing to the screen.

"Wait wait wait," Vanya says, leaning in closer to watch again. "Allison’s right, she _shouldn't_ be able to. She was built to be a caretaker and protector. She's meant to heal, and assist anyone in danger."

"So, what, her hardware is degrading?"

"I don't know," Vanya admits. "Maybe?"

"Let's talk to her," Allison suggests. "We should at least get her side of things. Besides, she seemed a little out of it yesterday." Her siblings agree, nodding and shutting off the tape.

~~

The three of them find Mom at her charging station, working on a cross stitch and humming softly to herself. They pause in the hall, exchanging a glance for a moment, until Allison finally approaches, sitting beside her. “Mom?”

Mom stills and then lifts her head, smiling. “Hello, Allison. How are you this morning?”

Allison swallows and returns the smile tightly. “Mom, it’s after two o’clock.”

“Oh.” She frowns momentarily before smiling again, looking up at Vanya and Luther past her. “Well, if we’ve missed lunch, why don’t I go make you all--”

“No, Mom, that’s alright,” Allison says, laying her hand over Mom’s. “We just have a couple of questions for you.”

“Oh. Well, alright, I’m happy to help however I can.”

Luther steps closer, kneeling in front of her, so he can look in her eyes. “What do you remember about the night Dad died?” Mom smiles brightly and informs them the temperature and time of sunset that day, and Luther interrupts. “No, Mom, later on. After he went to bed. Did you visit him?”

Mom hesitates for a moment, face laxing briefly. Then she focuses on Luther again and shakes her head slightly. “I’m sorry, Luther, I can’t seem to recall.”

Luther frowns, Vanya moving past him to sit on Mom’s other side, before replying. “You did. You took him tea.”

“Oh, of course, his evening tea,” Mom says, nodding, and looks back at the cross stitch in her hand, lifting it up again. “Mr. Hargreeves can never get to sleep without his tea.” Allison looks to Vanya and then to Luther uncertainly, before her sister speaks.

“Did you add anything to it?” she asks, hands fidgeting with her too-long sleeves.

“Just a teaspoon of honey, just the way he likes,” Mom answers, continuing to stitch.

“You’re sure? You didn’t, maybe, make a substitution that night? Or add something… extra?”

Mom starts to hum again, all attention on her sewing. After another moment, Allison touches her arm, squeezing gently to get her attention back on the conversation. “Were you ever mad at Dad?”

“Your father was a good man,” she says, smiling. “A _kind_ man, and he was very good to me.”

“Right, but after we left, being alone with him… That must have been hard.”

“Oh, there were days, you kids kept me _so busy,”_ Mom says, eyes lifting to the paintings on the wall behind Luther. “And then…” She trails off, hands lowering to rest in her lap, still holding the needle and frame. She stares at the paintings for a long moment, and the three of them exchange more glances. Then she smiles, eyes focusing on Luther now, and stands up, turning to look at the girls as well. “Who’s hungry?”

“Uh, no, Mom, that’s okay,” Luther says, standing up and motioning for her to sit back down. “Don’t worry about it.”

“Well alright, if you’re sure,” she replies, sitting and starting up the cross stitch again. She begins to hum once more and, after another glance, they make their way out, leaving her to it. Luther leads them back towards the security room, and as they reach the hall, Allison speaks up.

“There’s obviously _something_ wrong. Right?”

“Absolutely,” Vanya agrees.

“She could be faking,” Luther hedges, opening the door and nodding them in ahead of him.

“Are you serious?” Vanya huffs, frowning up at him, but follows Allison in anyway. “She’s breaking down, there’s no way she did anything deliberately.”

“Deliberate or not, she’s still dangerous. She could hurt any of us!”

“Luther, it’s _Mom,_ she _loves_ us, she would never hurt us,” Allison insists. How could Luther really think she would hurt _them?_

“Maybe that’s true,” Luther admits, “but if she’s actually breaking down, she might do something without meaning to.”

“So what do you suggest?” Vanya asks nervously, hands twisting at the overly long sleeves of her flannel.

Luther sighs, crossing his arms, like he knows they won’t like what he has to say. “We need to shut her down.”

“Diego will _never_ go for that,” Allison scoffs.

“Of course he won’t, but he’s _wrong,”_ Luther retorts. “We can’t just do nothing and wait for her to hurt someone else. We need to take care of this, now.”

“Well we can’t just make a decision like that on our own!” Vanya interjects. “We need to wait for Diego and Klaus to get back.”

“And let them try to stop us?”

“You aren’t the leader, Luther, you don’t get to call the shots anymore.”

Luther frowns, clearly prepared to keep fighting, but Allison reaches out, touching his arm. “She’s right, Luther. We need to at least talk to them, first. They deserve to have a say about what happens to their mother.”

Luther’s frown eases and he nods. “Alright, fine, but they need to see the tape.” The three of them gather up what they need and head downstairs. Once they get down to the sitting room, they start setting it up at the bar, and another squabble breaks out, loud enough to draw Five’s attention.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've also spent the last couple days writing notes for a couple other fic ideas, just to get them out of my head so I can refocus on this, but if anyone is interested in hearing about them, hit me up at cheydoesfandom.tumblr.com and maybe I'll post some of it!
> 
> (One is another season 1 AU with dad!Klaus, but no modern!Dave)  
> (The other is pre-canon with a Dave who survived the gunshot in Vietnam taking in homeless teen!Klaus in the 00s)


	32. 32

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "I was going to say I agree with _you!"_
> 
> “Oh. Okay, she should get a vote,” Diego agrees readily. Then he turns back to Klaus, who had been standing next to Five, but now they’ve both moved to the couch and--
> 
> Shit.
> 
> Klaus has one arm around Five’s shoulder, who is pressed into Klaus’s side, legs tucked up under himself. Klaus’s thumb is sliding back and forth over Five’s sleeve, and Diego thinks maybe the others were right, this was obviously too much for Five to handle seeing. Klaus is glaring at them. Klaus meets his gaze and snorts, head shaking. “Oh, would you care for _my_ opinion?” Klaus laughs, smiling at them. “I think that, _maybe,_ you boys are getting a _little_ aggressive and could really do with a chill pill a piece.”
> 
> “That’s not what we’re asking, Klaus,” Luther grunts, crossing his arms.
> 
> “Oh, I know,” Klaus agrees with a sharp smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, guys, here's Diego's POV, this is an edit of the previous Diego POV, so it will be pretty familiar. Hope you guys enjoy, next chapter should be up this weekend!

“We’re back!” Diego shouts, dragging Klaus along into the house. A second later, Five pops into the room, frowning deeply.

“What’s up, little man?” Klaus asks, reaching to ruffle Five’s hair, which the kid doesn’t take very well. He reaches up, smacking Klaus’s hand away with a glare. Klaus just grins, but lets him go.

Diego hears raised voices coming from the sitting room and frowns. “What’s goin’ on in there?”

Five crosses his arms and huffs irritably. “They won’t _tell_ me,” he complains. “I think they found something about Dad’s death, but Luther just keeps saying I’m too young.”

Diego nods and reaches out, playfully snagging the kid around the neck and tugging him to his side. “I’ll take care of Luther for ya,” he promises, as Five jumps out of his grasp before he can even get his knuckles to the crown of his head. Five turns his glare on Diego, but he just shakes his head, chuckling.

The three of them head into the next room, where they find the other three standing around a television they had set up on the bar, squabbling about _something._

“We got the box,” Diego says, approaching. “What the hell are you all up to?”

“We found security footage,” Luther says, gesturing to the TV.

“Of what?”

“The night Dad died,” Vanya answers, voice low and timid.

“Oh? So who dunnit?” Klaus asks too cheerfully.

Luther and Allison exchange a look, then glance towards Five before meeting Diego and Klaus’s eyes. “I don’t think Five should see this,” Allison says softly.

“Why not?” Five demands.

“Five, you don’t want to watch Dad die,” Vanya tells him, shaking her head solemnly.

“Guys, c’mon,” Diego huffs. “It was a heart attack, he can handle it.”

The others trade another look, and Klaus speaks up, hands resting on Five’s shoulders, giving him a gentle shake. “He’s Five’s dad, too. He deserves to see if he wants, so roll the tape. I, for one, can’t _wait_ to watch the old man croak.”

With a sigh, Luther hits play. He plays it three times before anyone says anything.

“What do you think you’ve found here? You seriously think _Mom_ did it?” Diego scoffs.

“It seems pretty conclusive,” Luther retorts, waving his hand at the screen.

“If he was poisoned, it would’ve turned up in the coroner’s report.”

“I don’t need a _report_ to tell me what I can see just fine.”

Diego grabs the remote, backing up the tape. “Look, she wasn’t _poisoning_ him,” he growls, letting the tape run while pointing to where their mother’s hands were. “She was just taking the fucking monocle. To _clean_ it.”

Luther frowns, squinting, and then straightens up. “Then where is it? I’ve searched everywhere.”

Diego shrugs, taking a few strategic steps away from Luther without making it obvious, in order to lean casually against a piece of furniture. “I took it from her yesterday.”

 _“You’ve_ had it this whole time?” Luther snaps before immediately demanding, “Give it to me.”

“I tossed it,” Diego says, chin lifted slightly.

“You _what?”_

“I knew if you found it on Mom you’d flip your shit, just like you’re doing _right now._ ”

“You Goddamn--”

“Guys, come on,” Vanya interrupts. “Whether she killed him or not, something has to be wrong. Diego, she wasn’t programmed to be capable of this, of murdering _or_ just standing by.”

“So, what? What’s your _grand_ solution, then, Vee?” Diego snarls. She isn’t the one to answer him, though.

“If her hardware is degrading, she’s a danger to everyone,” Luther says, voice steady and commanding. As if Diego ever listened to him in the first place, but he resists even harder when Luther tries to act like he’s in charge. “She needs to be shut down.”

“Whoa whoa whoa, wait, she, she isn’t a _vacuum cleaner_ you just shove in a closet! She _feels_ things, I’ve _seen_ it!” Diego shouts, trying not to let the sharp stab of fear and anxiety at just the words show on his face.

“She just _stood there!”_ Luther shouts back.

“I’m with Luther,” Allison says, and Diego rolls his eyes.

“Big fuckin’ surprise there.” Everyone seems to turn to Vanya then, and it’s strange, they so rarely gave her the floor as kids, and Diego is reluctant to do so even now. She opens her mouth, floundering for her words, and Diego cuts her off. “She shouldn’t get a vote!”

“Ah! I was going to say I agree with _you!”_

“Oh. Okay, she should get a vote,” Diego agrees readily. Then he turns back to Klaus, who had been standing next to Five, but now they’ve both moved to the couch and--

Shit.

Klaus has one arm around Five’s shoulder, who is pressed into Klaus’s side, legs tucked up under himself. Klaus’s thumb is sliding back and forth over Five’s sleeve, and Diego thinks maybe the others were right, this was obviously too much for Five to handle seeing. Klaus is glaring at them. Klaus meets his gaze and snorts, head shaking. “Oh, would you care for _my_ opinion?” Klaus laughs, smiling at them. “I think that, _maybe,_ you boys are getting a _little_ aggressive and could really do with a chill pill a piece.”

“That’s not what we’re asking, Klaus,” Luther grunts, crossing his arms.

“Oh, I know,” Klaus agrees with a sharp smile, arm shifting as Five lets go and sits up next to Klaus. Klaus’s hands clench for a moment before Klaus sighs and continues. “Look, obviously something is wrong. Mom had no clue what was going on yesterday, she just about burned the place down with toxic cookies, and now we’ve seen she stood by while Dad died. None of that is normal. But has anyone actually spoken to Mom? Or Pogo, maybe? I’m sure he could tell us if this has been going on for a while.”

Five has straightened up as Klaus spoke, and hardly looks like he’d been clutching to Klaus a moment ago. Diego shoots a quick frown towards Allison, but she just shrugs in return, so he lets it go for now. Klaus makes a halfway decent point, anyway.

Then Klaus has to ruin it by adding, “And Ben agrees with me.” The four of them all let out their own sound of frustration, and then turn to each other.

“I’m talking to Mom,” Diego says.

“Then I’m coming with you,” Luther asserts.

“No, you go talk to Pogo!”

“No way, you’ll be too soft on Grace!”

“Grace? _Grace?_ She’s our _Mom!”_ Diego shouts.

“She’s a malfunctioning machine, Diego!”

“Guys, this isn’t helping!” Vanya interjects, and he _hates_ it when she tries to play mediator, like she has any right to be involved in their fights. “We already spoke to Mom, Luther, let Diego go. Klaus has a point, we _haven’t_ asked Pogo about it yet.”

“He’s not going by himself,” Luther growls.

“Fine! The two of _you_ go see Mom, then, and I’ll take Vanya to see Pogo!” Allison exclaims.

“That sounds like a terrible idea,” Klaus’s voice cuts over everyone’s, and Five is leaning against Klaus again. “The testosterone twins should _not_ be left together. Now, ladies, who wants to babysit whom?”

Diego is Not Impressed by Klaus’s attitude and choice of words, but he’s not interested in going with Luther, so he doesn’t argue. Allison decides to go with Luther (big surprise), which sticks Diego with _Vanya._

Luther turns, voice booming as he calls Klaus’s name.

“What now?”

“Are you sober enough to get a hold of Dad?”

 _“Sober_ enough, yes,” Klaus replies airily. “But I’m certainly not _motivated_ to. Why do you ask?” Klaus gives such a falsely sweet smile that Diego cringes. Luther doesn’t seem to notice.

“Well, it’d give you something to do while we talk to Grace and Pogo,” he says.

“Ohhh, right, right, of course. Well, if you want to cough up the dough, I’d be happy to make an appointment for you.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Diego asks.

“You didn’t think I’d perform a séance for _free,_ did you?” Klaus asks, eyebrows raised in mock surprise.

“Klaus, come on, it’s _Dad,”_ Allison says. “If you’re _actually_ sober for once, why wouldn’t you?”

“Because he’s a bitter old man! And, honestly, my rates are _very_ fair, you can check the yellow pages.”

 _That’s_ how Klaus was paying the bills? _Séances?_ How many people had Klaus scammed with that? How often had Klaus done it for something other than money? Furthermore, why wouldn’t Klaus just _do_ it for them? It was the easiest way to get Luther to shut up! But _no,_ Klaus always has to be the center of attention, one way or another.

Unless, of course, Klaus _couldn’t_ do it. As often as Klaus gets high, Diego finds it difficult to believe that Klaus would ever be sober enough to perform any séances. It’s probably just one big scam, if Klaus is even telling the truth about doing them. “I’m _sure,_ ” he scoffs, rolling his eyes. “Just… Stay with Five, then.”

“I don’t appreciate all of the mollycoddling,” Five says sharply. “I don’t need to be _babysat._ ”

“Oh, they mean well,” Klaus says, ruffling Five’s hair with a laugh. Five swats at Klaus, but doesn’t jump away.

“I can take care of myself,” he insists.

“Sure you can,” Klaus agrees, and it’s kind of weird hearing Klaus get on so well with Five like this. “But you don’t want to sit here all alone, do you?”

“I want to talk to Mom,” Five says.

“Oh, uh, maybe not--”

“That’s probably not the _best_ ide--”

“If it can keep these idiots from fighting--”

“He deserves to be involv--”

“Are you sure?” Klaus asks, turning to Five.

“Yes,” he insists. “I want to know what happened.”

“You said so yourself, Klaus, he’s Dad’s kid, too, he deserves to be involved,” Diego reminds.

“He deserves to _know_ what’s going on, but he’s still only _ten._ None of this should be his problem,” Klaus argues.

“I want to go,” Five says again, and Klaus sighs.

“He can come with us,” Vanya offers. “You go with the others to see Pogo.”

“Alright, fine,” Klaus says, eyes rolling and hand squeezing Five’s shoulder. Klaus's voice lowers, head dipping to look Five in the eyes, and Diego doesn't catch the next sentence. Five nods, eyes shooting around for a moment, and Diego wonders if he’s nervous. Then they split up, going in search of their guardians.


	33. 33

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “What are you talking about?” Diego hisses, turning to look at her.
> 
> “Well, he built her, programmed her to be our mother. She’s a program that he wrote. And sometimes, when I look at her… I just see _him.”_
> 
> Diego frowns, crossing his arms tightly, and glaring. “Maybe… Maybe that was true at first, but she’s evolved. She’s more than what he created.”
> 
> “How do you know?” Vanya asks, voice soft and uncertain.
> 
> They’re silent for another moment, watching her speak with Five, eyes still distant, but directed at their brother again. She falls silent with a smile and looks down at the cross stitch she’s holding, before angling it to show to Five. “She loves us,” Diego murmurs. “And he only ever loved himself.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey guys! I made a couple tiny tweaks in the last chapter, just an added sentence and a change in Klaus's dialogue about Ben, indicating that Klaus made an attempt to manifest Ben during the argument  
> I gotta admit, I'm really struggling with the next Five POV, all that's left to get it ready is some connective/transitional bits, and I'm like thiiiis close to just leaving them as vague blurbs just to get it published so I can move on to the next chapter  
> anyway, enjoy Ben's POV, expect Klaus sometime Tuesday-ish!

Ben shakes his head at the idiocy of his siblings. Does Luther _really_ think Mom could kill Dad? Besides it being against her programming to hurt any of them, Dad included, she has the kindest, sweetest personality Ben has ever met. Diego clearly thought the same, that Luther was reaching way too far, but he was also definitely too invested in claiming that nothing was wrong at all.

Klaus had at least made a brief attempt to manifest Ben when the others turned to them, so he could give his own opinion and in the process _maybe_ defuse the argument altogether purely through his presence, but between the day before and that morning, he was simply too drained. Klaus needed more than a couple of stress filled hours to recharge. Maybe tomorrow.

Five’s insistence on going to see Mom was met by some resistance, but Klaus caved fairly easily, waving at Ben to stick to the kid. Which, of course he would. Ben has hardly left his side since he showed up, and he doesn’t plan to for a while yet.

He can hardly be surprised by how little attention the others have paid to Five, but it’s still infuriating that they haven’t even noticed how anxious Five gets when they fight. At least Klaus has been paying attention, he hates to imagine how bad off it would be for Five if he wasn’t. There’s not much he can do about it, however, so he follows those in search of Mom, while Klaus goes with the others to find Pogo.

Five zaps ahead up the stairs, Diego and Vanya following after him. They find Mom at her charging port, admiring the paintings. The older two share a glance which lasts long enough for Five to approach her himself.

“Mom?”

She turns to face him and smiles brightly. “Five, dear, how lovely to see you.”

Five sits beside her, leaving only an inch of cushion between them. “You too,” he says softly. Mom puts an arm around Five, pulling him against her, and rubs his shoulder affectionately.

“Is there something wrong, sweetheart?” she asks, and it’s a good sign that she can see his distress.

Five squirms a little in her hold, but doesn’t pull away. He keeps his eyes on their laps as he speaks. “Do you know what happened to Dad?”

“Happened when, dear?” she asks, and that’s a bad sign. The obvious memory trouble is concerning, but that alone isn’t enough to justify just turning her off.

“How did he _die?”_ Five clarifies, looking up at her face.

“Oh.” She pauses, smile slipping, and looks into Five’s face for a long moment. Eventually, she blinks, head tipping, and smiles brightly again. “Are you hungry, dear?”

That is an even worse sign.

“No, Mom,” Five says, frowning up at her. “I just want to know what happened. You were with him, we saw the tape. What happened?”

Mom’s smile turns brittle, her eyes unfocused again. “I can’t recall,” she murmurs, turning to look up at the paintings on the wall and pulling Five a little closer, thumb grazing over his shoulder. Ben crosses his arms, glancing back at Diego and Vanya, who have stayed back, exchanging looks. Vanya’s face has soured, eyebrows pinched together and lips twisted into a frown. She turns to Diego and starts to say something, so Ben moves closer so he can hear what she has to say.

“--told her an hour ago that she was there, Diego, and she said the same thing. Something’s wrong with her memory, it’s been corrupted somehow.”

“No, that’s, that’s not the problem, she’s just _tired,”_ Diego denies, and Ben sighs, shaking his head. Diego’s always been a bit of a momma’s boy, but it seems pretty clear that she’s not okay.

They’re both quiet for a moment, watching her and Five, who’s speaking softly, but doesn’t seem to be receiving much of an answer. Eventually, Vanya speaks up again. “Do you ever… wonder? About all those moments with Mom, the things she would say to us. Like, how much of it was really _her_ and how much was just… Dad, talking through her?”

“What are you talking about?” Diego hisses, turning to look at her.

“Well, he built her, programmed her to be our mother. She’s a program that he wrote. And sometimes, when I look at her… I just see _him.”_

Diego frowns, crossing his arms tightly, and glaring. “Maybe… Maybe that was true at first, but she’s evolved. She’s more than what he created.”

“How do you know?” Vanya asks, voice soft and uncertain.

They’re silent for another moment, watching her speak with Five, eyes still distant, but directed at their brother again. She falls silent with a smile and looks down at the cross stitch she’s holding, before angling it to show to Five. “She loves us,” Diego murmurs. “And he only ever loved himself.” Then he approaches the couch, Vanya following right behind him. He crouches in front of their mother, placing his hands on her knees to draw her attention.

Mom turns to him, smiling. “Diego, how nice to see you."

“You too, Mom,” he replies. “Listen, I--” He pauses, swallowing, and squeezes her hand. “Why did you do it? Take care of us, and love us, and spend so much time and energy on a bunch of unruly kids?”

“Because being your mother is the greatest gift I’ve ever received,” she says, still smiling that empty, serene smile she’s been wearing since yesterday, which looks more strained and plastic every time Ben sees it.

Diego stares, watching her closely, but whatever he’s looking for, he doesn’t seem to find it. “I-is that you, though? Is that what _you_ think? Or is it like _he’s_ telling you what to think?”

“What do you mean?” she laughs, tipping her head curiously. “Your father isn’t here, silly.”

“No, he’s not,” Vanya joins, sitting on her other side, and her voice is so gentle and vulnerable. “But he can still affect us, even though he’s gone.” Mom frowns a little, brow furrowing. “It’s just that… It would be okay if you hate him. Most of us do.”

“Why would I--”

“He was terrible to you,” Diego interrupts. “To all of us.”

“Don’t say that,” Mom scolds, frowning deeper.

_“Why_ not?” Vanya asks, a half-sob of frustration. “We were hardly more than an experiment to him, and he never even gave you a room of your own, in _thirty_ years! We would understand if you wanted to hurt him.”

“Oh, please,” Diego scoffs, turning his attention to her. _“We?_ Where do you get off including yourself in the bullshit he put us through?”

“He treated me just as badly,” Vanya argues. “Just because it was different doesn’t mean it was less!”

“Yeah, because standing by and _taking notes_ is just as bad,” Diego snarls, and Ben glances at Five, whose eyes have widened in surprise, watching their arguing siblings. As the fight devolves into a game of who-had-it-worst between Diego and Vanya, Ben rolls his eyes irritably. They couldn’t at least have this fight in _private?_ Five doesn’t need to hear the nasty details of their upbringing after he left. He was lucky to have been spared, and hearing about it like this, without any context, through the equally traumatized but wildly different lenses of these two in the middle of a fight, will just confuse and scare him further.

Their voices start to rise and Mom has turned away, staring at the paintings again, lost to the world around her. Five is pressing closer to Mom, watching them closely, eyes darting to Diego’s knives every time his hands move.

“For fuck’s sake,” Ben sighs. He moves closer to Five and puts a hand on his shoulder, even though he can’t sense him. “I’ll be right back, bud,” he promises, then closes his eyes, finding the thread of energy connecting him to their sibling, and pulls.


	34. 34

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Don’t get your hopes up, Klaus,” Luther rumbles, hands in loose fists as his sides. “She still probably killed Dad.”
> 
> “So _what?”_ Klaus spits, rounding on their brother. “He deserved it!”
> 
> “Take that back!” Luther growls, face darkening and fists tightening.
> 
> “No! He was the worst father on the _planet,_ Luther, and you’re still sitting here, _worshipping_ the bastard!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey, so this is a little later than I promised, I think hoping for 2 updates a week was too ambitious, so I'm going to cut back to one, probably updating Friday nights.
> 
> this is Klaus's POV, a mix of edited bits and new ones, and next is Five's, but I still have some work to do on it, which has left me procrastinating and entertaining other fic ideas for like three weeks, so now I've got 10 ideas in a folder for consideration and no backlog of chapters prepared like I had wanted
> 
> just a reminder, Klaus is still using they, and all the general warnings in the tags still apply

Klaus and their siblings found Pogo in Dad’s office, but haven’t gotten much out of him, and Klaus isn’t surprised. He knows something, he has to, Pogo always knew everything going on in this house. He knows everything any of them were ever forced to endure in the name of training, he knows exactly when Dad’s first bottle of booze went missing, he knows why they all left, and he still stayed. He stayed with the old man until the end, and sure, maybe he owed his life to him, but he didn’t owe  _ theirs. _

So, no, Klaus isn’t surprised that the chimp is staying tight-lipped about whatever went down, and they’ve had just about enough of it when Luther asks, “Are there any other recent tapes? Something else that might help us determine what’s been going on?”

“I’m sorry, Master Luther,” Pogo says, and he sounds _so_ sorrowful that Klaus suspects he actually _is,_ “but the only tapes I know of are the ones I showed you. I was… unaware that there were _any_ so recent, perhaps there is something more among them.”

“Wait wait wait,” they interrupt, standing up from the display case they had been leaning against and waving one hand in the air. “It doesn’t seem strange to anyone that Pogo showed us the tape, but claims to have not known it was there?”

Allison and Luther turn to them, neither looking terribly impressed by the question. “He showed me the whole room, not just that tape. It wasn’t even in the player when we got there,” Luther says, frowning with his whole face.

“Ohhh,” Klaus drawls, rolling their eyes and tipping their head, perhaps a tad condescendingly. “So the last tape had already been taken out of the VCR and, when you put it in, was queued to the exact right moment? That’s even  _ more _ suspicious!” They swing their arms through the air, shoulders hunching slightly as they glare across the room.

“Klaus, what are you accusing Pogo of?” Allison asks in the moment of silence that follows, Luther apparently not having a response at the ready.

“I don’t know. Nothing, yet,” Klaus says, crossing their arms with a frown. “But he definitely knows something and is refusing to share.”

“Miss Klaus,” Pogo starts, and it’s almost relieving that Pogo still calls them Miss, even though he most certainly read Vanya’s book, but Klaus is not interested.

“Oh, I know,” they plow over whatever he might have to say. “It’s all about keeping  _ Daddy’s _ secrets. But you  _ do _ know something. You’ve always known everything in this house, so I don’t believe for one second that you wouldn’t notice if Mom was degrading.”

Allison turns to Pogo then. “Did you really not notice her behavior changes before this?”

“I’m afraid I must say that I did not,” he replies softly, bowing his head.

“But you have now?”

“Yes.”

“So when  _ did _ you notice?” Luther asks.

Pogo hesitates for a moment before answering. “…the morning after your father’s demise.”

“And you didn’t think to mention it when we got here?” Klaus demands.

“I did not wish to add to the weight on your shoulders, Miss Klaus. I felt that the death of your father and the reunion between you all was more than enough stress.”

“You didn’t think we would  _ notice?” _ Luther presses.

Pogo sighs, adjusting his stance to lean a little heavier on his cane. “Grace’s condition seems to be getting worse, rapidly. I did not think it was so serious as this, however.”

“It happened suddenly, then,” Allison says.

“So maybe we can still fix her?”

“Don’t get your hopes up, Klaus,” Luther rumbles, hands in loose fists as his sides. “She still probably killed Dad.”

“So _what?”_ Klaus spits, rounding on their brother. “He deserved it!”

“Take that back!” Luther growls, face darkening and fists tightening.

“No! He was the worst father on the  _ planet, _ Luther, and you’re still sitting here,  _ worshipping _ the bastard!”

“Master Luther, Miss Klaus, I don’t think--” Pogo tries to stop the fight that is about to break out, but it’s Ben’s arrival that brings Klaus up short, dousing their fuse. Klaus sighs, rubbing their face as Ben informs them that Diego is fighting with  _ Vanya _ now, and Five looks nervous as hell. They swear under their breath and drop their hands, looking up at their largest brother.

“Look, I don’t know how to get through to you, but Dad was a  _ dick. _ He treated us all like shit, yourself included, and has  _ always _ had Mom and Pogo under his thumb. He still does.” Then they spin and stalk out of the room, ignoring Luther calling their name, and are grateful that he doesn’t try to follow, because Klaus might actually try to break his nose (not that they could), and then Allison would be all pissed at them, too.

As soon as they’re out of earshot, Klaus is hurrying and hissing to Ben. “What the fuck happened now?”

“I hardly even know. Diego went off on her because she suggested that Dad treated her as bad as everyone else,” Ben complains. “And Five was already clutching at Mom when I left.”

“Fuck,” Klaus huffs, reaching the top of the stairs. They can hear Diego’s voice now, shouting down Vanya.

“Diego, I’m not--”

“Sounds like a bestseller to _me!”_

Turning the corner, they find them in each other’s faces, both looking and sounding angry. They’re almost a little proud to see Vanya standing up for herself, but they don’t have the time for this. Shaking their head, Klaus turns their attention to the couch.

Mom is staring vacantly at her paintings, Five no longer attached to her side, instead ducked behind the seat, putting as much of it between himself and their fighting siblings as he could. Klaus dodges the other two to reach him. “Hey, you alright?” they ask, kneeling beside him and resting a hand on Five’s shoulder. His eyes pop open, and the look of relief on his face makes Klaus’s heart clench. “It’s alright, come on, we’ll go downstairs, leave these assholes to their bickering.”

“Don’t pretend you’re  _ sorry!” _ Diego shouts, but Klaus ignores it, keeping a tense smile on their face.

Five nods and stands up, letting Klaus steady him. Klaus turns to Mom, then. No reason to leave her here with these jackasses. “Hey, Mom, let’s go downstairs,” they say, but she doesn’t seem to respond. “Mom?” they try again, touching her shoulder, but she just keeps smiling up at the paintings. Something is seriously wrong, and if Diego can’t see it, then he is in serious denial.

“She doesn’t even notice them fighting,” Ben says. “Just… let her be.”

Klaus nods, sighing. “Yeah, alright then. Come on, Five, Mom’ll come down when she’s ready.”

Looking back to Five, he’s rubbing at the side of his neck as he nods. “Okay,” he murmurs.

Klaus puts a hand on one shoulder, giving him a little half-hug, and starts to lead him toward the stairs. Five jumps ahead to the staircase, but waits for Klaus to catch up before jumping down them. He keeps this up all the way to the sitting room, where he finds a chair to curl up in.

Klaus slumps into another chair and rubs their face with a sigh. “You okay?” they ask through their hands.

Five hums in response, which sounds affirmative, but Klaus peeks through their fingers and he’s practically in the fetal position over there. Klaus stands up and comes to sit on the arm of his chair, reaching to comb their fingers through his hair. “It’s okay if you’re not,” they say. “I know _whatever_ they were fighting about was probably confusing and upsetting.” Five doesn’t reply, instead curling around his knees tighter. He lets Klaus pet his hair, though, so they do. Klaus doesn’t say anything else, but before too long they’ve started humming one of Grace Kelly’s lullabies softly, just to fill the silence between them.

Five’s breathing slows and his posture relaxes incrementally, until his hands slip from around his legs to rest in his lap, and he’s fully relaxed, staring into the distance and thinking hard. Klaus sighs, brushing his bangs from his forehead, and wonders for just a second if this is weird before brushing it off. The kid is ten and deserves a little tenderness, and no one else around here is gonna offer it.


End file.
